


A Decent Cup of Coffee

by DepressedCarrot



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Non-Magical, Angst, Anxiety, Anxiety Disorder, Baristas, Coffee, Coffee Shops, Cuddling & Snuggling, Drinking, Dysfunctional Family, F/M, Falling In Love, Fluff, House Party, Kissing, Love Confessions, Love at First Sight, Making Out, Meeting the Parents, Mental Breakdown, Mental Health Issues, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Mild Language, Minor Violence, References to Depression, Slice of Life, Suicide Attempt, Suicide Notes, Summer, Summer Romance, Teen Crush, Teen Romance, Teenagers, Therapy, coffee shop AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-10
Updated: 2020-07-25
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:47:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 26
Words: 107,244
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24652582
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DepressedCarrot/pseuds/DepressedCarrot
Summary: Connie begins working at Beach City Coffee, a small independent coffee shop in the middle of a tourist town in Delmarva.Whilst working alongside her new colleagues, Sadie and Lars - she finds that regular customers aren't always regular people...The Connverse coffee shop AU you never wanted, but always deserved. Served hot!
Relationships: Connie Maheswaran & Steven Universe, Connie Maheswaran/Steven Universe, Connverse, Lars Barriga & Sadie Miller, Lars Barriga/Sadie Miller
Comments: 298
Kudos: 303





	1. Vanilla Latte

**Author's Note:**

> Ever desperately desire a decent cup of coffee? 
> 
> As by coffee - I mean Connverse.
> 
> Hopefully this fic will quench that thirst for some sweet sweet Connverse in the form of a generic coffee shop AU.

It was a somewhat cloudy morning in Beach City, a small beach town that was usually crowded with tourists in the peak seasons. Instead, the small town was a comfortable kind of quiet. The only people on the boardwalk being those who lived in town, using the walkway to reach their desired location. 

Situated on the edge of the boardwalk was a small independent coffee shop that could have been considered the heart of the town due to how many commuters and locals got their caffeine fix there. It was true in saying the world would have fallen apart without coffee.

Although the coffee shop was managed by an out of town businessman, the shop was open and closed by a grouchy teenager called Lars who had spent the past three years making coffee for the general public - much to his discretion. 

Lars was accompanied by another member of staff, Sadie. They often worked together, sometimes working alone when it wasn’t busy enough for there to be both of them there. It was only during the peak seasons that they hired more members of staff, usually people back from college for the summer who were looking for some kind of part-time job to occupy their mind and help aid student loans. 

They had started hiring slightly earlier this year, wanting to make sure that whoever they did employee knew just about everything there was to know about making coffee by the time the tourists began to roll through. This was a sure way that the business would keep afloat, even in the offseason. 

This year, they had decided to hire a smart young girl by the name of Connie Mahaeswaran. She had no prior work experience, but her grades clearly showed how competent she was when it came to learning new things. Connie was only sixteen years old, but they instantly knew she would have fitted in perfectly with the rest of the team. Being as smart as she was, it wouldn’t have taken her long to grasp onto any of the procedures. 

“And there you have it - a latte!” Sadie placed the latte down on the saucer, the steamed milk on top forming the perfectly cut shape of a heart. 

Connie stared contently at the top of the coffee, Sadie had made the coffee so quickly that Connie was overly impressed with her abilities. It was near to impossible to recreate the technique in which Sadie used to make the pattern on the top of the latte. The way in which her hands moved together in unison, so delicate and precise. Connie mentally took note of everything that Sadie had taught her, from where the mugs were kept to the procedures on restocking napkin holders. 

It was only her second day on the job and she was already having a lot of fun. Being in a working environment was a lot different from schoolwork and Connie was grateful to getaway. 

“A heart? C’mon Sadie, you could have shown her something cooler!” Lars groaned, sat on top of the counter opposite kicking his feet back and forth overlooking the process. The first thing that Connie had noticed about the man was the obnoxious pair of red and black basketball shoes that he insisted on wearing to work. Although Connie didn't quite have a grasp on the monetary value of sneakers, she knew that they were far too expensive to be wearing in a coffee shop. They had only met twice and Lars had already stated they were limited edition at least four times. 

“I’m teaching the basics, Lars!” Sadie rolled her eyes towards Connie, she had already figured out that the two of them had quite the unique dynamic. 

Connie had only been there two days and had already witnessed them bickering at each other more often than not. It didn’t seem malicious, just a strange relationship in which they spent the vast majority of time together irritating the other person. Connie had spent her whole life expressing rather awkward social behaviour and having both Sadie and Lars around was incredibly interesting to her. Neither of them seemed to mind what they said to one another. Connie liked the idea of being able to speak to others without being worried about what they may have thought about her. 

“Move aside. Let me show you how a professional does it!” Lars hopped down from the counter, causing both Connie and Sadie to step back from the work station. 

Lars readjusted his apron and got to work on creating his own version of a latte. Sadie leant against the counter and folded over her arms, Connie mimicked her actions. They both watched as Lars put his full concentration into creating the work of art. 

“Don’t ever worry about getting things wrong, Mr.Perfectionist over there just likes to show off.” Sadie mumbled out the side of her mouth before taking her cap off and placing it back on her head to achieve a more comfortable position.

Their uniform consisted of a brown apron, a brown baseball cap with the words 'Beach City Coffee' threaded into the fabric and a silver name badge that clipped onto the front of the apron. Connie quite liked the uniform, although there wasn't much special about it, it felt plain and just right. It felt - comfortable. 

“Oh?” Connie smiled back at Sadie, finding her new work colleagues a pleasure to be around. 

Working at the coffee shop was something that she had spent nights worrying about after acing her interview. Connie wanted a job as much as any other teenager, but she certainly wanted something in which she could challenge herself. She had always been an incredibly shy girl and forcing herself to speak to members of the public was the only way she was going to get over that barrier of anxiety. As much as she wanted to be sat at home with her head in a good book, working would have been a great way for her to break out of her social comfort zone before going to college in a few years. 

“What was that?” Lars turned his head sharply before scowling at them both. 

Connie had come to a discovery that although Lars usually made himself out to be tough on the outside, he had a soft side that only wanted the best for everyone and even the business. He occasionally lacked the work ethic that she believed was required for this kind of establishment, but she couldn’t judge too much after only being there for two days. 

The shop was pretty quiet on the bridge between the commuters morning rush and lunchtime during the offseason. They were on the borderline of being busy throughout the summer and Connie was determined to become proficient at her work by the time the customers began to roll in. Connie had stood and taken the named of customers the last two mornings, gaining both skills in customer service and the ability to work the cash register. 

“Oh, nothing…” Sadie sniggered as she winked towards Connie. Connie grinned, already feeling like a part of the team. 

Lars continued to make the latte, moving onto the stage that would make or break his teaching abilities. 

“Hey Connie, come check this out!” Lars insisted as he held the jug of steamed milk, ready to show off his coffee art skills. 

Connie stepped forward, watching carefully as Lars tapped the jug of milk against the counter, the mug carefully positioned in the palm of his other hand. Lars gently began to pour the milk into the centre of the mug, the look of concentration spread across his face. He stared down at the task before moving the mug and jug in such succession to make the perfect shape of a rosetta.

Lars carefully placed the mug back down on the counter, incredibly proud of his design. A piece of artwork he had spent years trying to master. 

“Woah, that’s incredible!” Connie gasped, there was no way that she would have been able to achieve something so pretty. Sadie had already given her free reign of attempting her own latte art in which she had managed to make an artistic...blob. 

“Incredible. Did you hear that, Sadie? Incredible!” Lars cocked an eyebrow as he placed his hands on his hips. 

“Don’t compliment him too much, it tends to go straight to his head.” Sadie sighed, speaking directly to Connie. Connie often found Sadie speaking directly to her opposed to addressing her and Lars at the same time. 

“Noted.” Connie grinned, slowly understanding the way in which their banter worked. 

“Hey! I’m standing right here.” Lars pouted, folding over his arms in the process. 

“I know - that’s why I said it.” Sadie chuckled, unable to stop herself from commenting. 

Lars clenched his fists and huffed, he was incredibly defensive. As much as he didn’t want to admit it, Sadie was his best friend - despite the amount in which they bullied one another. They grew frustrated with each other often, but they wouldn’t have changed it for the world. 

Suddenly a loud ring echoed through the shop, notifying the employees that they needed to act professionally in the presence of customers. There was no time to fool around when it came to business. Sadie suddenly perked up at the noise, standing up straight and preparing herself for a customer. Lars spun on his heel, also ready to make whatever the customer desired. 

“Lars! Sadie!” A friendly sounding voice practically shouted as they entered. 

Connie was yet to learn the names of any of their regulars, but she had come across a few already. Most of which had been part of the crowd of commuters, it seemed that half of them didn’t even need to mention their orders before Lars and Sadie had already started making them. They clearly came in too often that they didn’t need to share their order nor their name. 

Connie hoped that one day she would have been able to learn every single name and every single order. It was something to strive towards at least. 

“Steven…” Lars grumbled, only just audibly enough to reach Sadie and Connie. 

“Oh, it’s Steven! You’re going to have to take his order, it’ll be good practice for you.” Sadie nudged Connie gently as a way of getting her to step forward. 

“Do you know what he’s going to order?” Connie questioned, they seemed to know the orders of all their regulars. Perhaps Sadie could have given her a head start? 

Sadie snorted. 

“Never. Let’s just say Steven has...unusual orders.” Sadie grinned, knowing for well that whatever Steven was going to order was going to be something bizarre. 

Connie gulped. Why couldn’t everyone just order a simple cup of coffee? 

“Sorry, I’m latte!” The young man grinned widely as he placed his elbows on the counter opposite the small group of baristas and leant forward. It was much later in the morning than they usually expected him to roll through the door, however, with Steven he could have come in whenever and they wouldn’t have been surprised. 

“Ugh, you’ve made that horrible joke every time you’ve come in slightly later than usual.” Lars groaned at the regular customer who seemed to be closely acquainted with them both. 

“Aw Lars, don’t you like the brewtiful puns I mocha?” Steven grinned, leaning his head on his hands as he leant even further forward on the counter. 

Connie couldn’t help but snigger at the puns, they were hilariously bad. Steven noticed the small laugh escape from the lips of the unfamiliar face. Almost immediately his huge grin was wiped off his face as he locked eyes with the new barista. 

Connie found herself staring back. The young man was probably no older than she was, his curly black hair protruding from the bottom of the black snapback cap that he had propped neatly on the top of his head. It was the kind of fashion choice that Connie had never been keen on, but it somehow suited the boy. He was well built, his body filling in all the right places, his eyes were a heavy shade of hazel, staring back at her with his mouth slightly ajar. Draped over a black hoodie was an oversized pink varsity jacket. She immediately internally questioned which highschool he went to and what kind of sport he played, however, the varsity jacket had no school branding on the chest. 

Connie quickly looked away, it was rude to stare! Her mind was quick to wander as she dipped her head and hid her red cheeks under the cap she was wearing. 

“Do you even hear yourself? None of that even makes any sense!” Lars threw his hands in the air, becoming increasingly frustrated with the young man who seemed to only come into the coffee shop to torment him. 

“I thought they were very good puns. Well done, Steven.” Sadie smiled, noticing Steven’s facial expression drop. Little did she know it was for reasons other than Lars’ inability to appreciate a good pun when he heard one. 

“Thank you, Sadie. At least someone appreciates good humour!” Steven huffed, furrowing his eyebrows towards Lars. Lars rolled his eyes before turning around, he didn’t need to be around for Steven’s order. Connie and Sadie could sort out whatever monstrosity he claimed to want to drink. 

“So, what can I get you today?” Sadie questioned as she tapped on the cash register to bring up the list of options, she noticed Steven's vacant stare that was directed behind her to their trainee. 

Steven detracted his attention away from the new employee, suddenly realising what Sadie had asked him. 

“Oh, please may I have a regular mocha frappe?” Steven awkwardly scratched the side of his face, his eyes switching between both Sadie and the new girl stood anxiously behind her. 

There wasn’t quite anything strange about that order. Connie could do that! That was an easy one to remember. 

“Hey, that’s pretty normal!” Lars mumbled, turning slightly to once again become a part of the conversation. It wasn't as if he could spend more than thirty seconds without being included. 

“With four pumps of caramel syrup, four pumps of caramel sauce, three pumps of toffee syrup and three pumps of mocha with extra whipped cream.” Steven suddenly blurted out. 

“Oh, there it is…” Lars sighed, it certainly wasn’t the first time Steven had ordered something completely obscene and insanely grotesque. 

Sadie’s finger hovered over the screen of the cash register, her face only able to display a look of disgust. Connie stood in the background, unsure of whether or not she should have started creating the drink or asking if the customer needed her to call an ambulance in advance. 

“Hey, Connie, ready to take this one?” Sadie turned around and gave Connie a somewhat uneasy look. 

Connie shrugged her shoulders, of course, she was more than willing to give everything a go. She needed to make sure that she was practising her barista skills, regardless of the requests. If this Steven character was a regular, she would need to get used to making bizarre combinations of drinks, despite it probably being a crime for them to exist in several states. Perhaps making the strange orders on a regular basis would have made the less unorthodox menu options a lot less daunting? 

Steven continued to lean on the counter by the cash register, awaiting his order.

Connie decided to take on the challenge, stepping towards the counter and grabbing a plastic cup. She began to get to work on making the somewhat undrinkable beverage, Lars and Sadie watching her with careful eyes. Not only were they watching, but the kind eyes of Steven Universe was also watching her carefully as she moved around the space under Sadie's instructions. 

Sadie gave Connie prompts on what syrups and sauces to put in the drink, recalling them all with ease. It wasn’t something that Steven had ordered before, but she had noticed a familiar pattern in what syrups and sauces he requested. Steven paid for his drink and continued to wait patiently as Connie was directed around the kitchen by Sadie - Lars didn’t do much other than stand and watch. 

Finally, Connie finished up with creating the ungodly concoction that she hoped no human would have consumed, yet there across the counter was the human who she only assumed had an iron stomach. 

“One regular mocha frappuccino with...lots of extras.” Connie wasn’t quite sure what to say as she placed the drink on the counter and clicked on the plastic lid, completing the takeaway beverage with an excessive squirt of whipped cream and a paper straw. 

“Thank you...Connie.” Steven gripped his hand around the cup and smiled towards the new barista. He glanced down at the silver name badge attached to the teenager’s apron, pretending that he hadn’t already heard her name previously spoken by Sadie. 

“No problem!” Connie grinned back, insanely proud of her ability to create the blend of pure sugar. She stared at the drink in his hand before giving off a look of concern. “You’re not really going to drink that - are you?” 

Steven stared down at the drink, it was no worse than anything else that he had ordered from the coffee shop in the past. In fact, what he had just ordered was pretty tame in comparison to some of the things that he had previously ordered. 

“Yeah, I am.” Steven shrugged before sipping on the drink, completely numb to the sheer amount of sugar that was in the drink. Connie nervously swallowed the saliva that had built up within her mouth, she couldn’t even begin to imagine how sickly the drink would have been. 

“Ew, that’s disgusting! I liked it better when you only came in for doughnuts.” Lars gave Steven a look of absolute disgust. 

“A growing boy like myself needs sugar. It’s science.” Steven sipped on the drink once more to everyone’s horror as they grimaced at the action. 

Connie desperately wanted to interrupt with some facts on the subject but kept her mouth shut. She didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings with...science. Real science. 

“I flunked science and even I know that’s a load of nonsense!” Lars defensively folded his arms once more, a reoccurring pattern. 

Steven shrugged his shoulders, placing his spare hand inside of his jacket pocket without a care in the world. It seemed as if he didn’t have time for anyone’s judgement. It looked as if he had it all figured out, at least the confidence in his stance spoke to everyone in the room that way. Connie wished that one day she could have had that kind of confidence. 

“See you soon, everybody! Thanks for the drink, Connie. It was nice meeting you.” Steven raised the cup above his head and gestured towards the shy looking barista stood behind the counter. 

“It was nice to meet you too.” Connie gave him a little wave in return. 

There was something about the boy that she couldn’t quite understand. There was something about his tone, something about the way that he looked at her, the way that he owned the room - he was different. Connie was interested to know more about the strange boy. 

Steven spun on his heel and propped the straw between his lips, his hand in the air waving to everyone as he exited the building. Connie watched him leave, not walking either side of the boardwalk, but instead walking straight onto the beach outside of the shop. 

"He's such a weird kid." Lars commented harshly as they all watched him leave. 

"Lars!" Sadie snapped. 

"He seemed pretty nice." Connie couldn't quite put her fingers on the charm in which the boy brought into the shop. It was different from all the other customers - different from the rest of the regulars. 

"He is, Connie. Lars is just being a jerk!" Sadie scowled up at her much taller counterpart.

"What? C'mon, no normal human being could consume that much sugar without getting caught in a coma. It's unnatural." Lars continued to jeer. 

"Maybe so, but he's still a paying customer so there's no need to be rude about his orders. Let him order what he wants without being judged by the likes of you." Sadie boldly defended Steven's choice of beverage, having a slight understanding of Steven's situation and why he came into the shop so often. 

The teenager had spent the last few years coming into the shop for coffee and other sweet beverages. For the most part, it seemed like he had only come into the store for some kind of social interaction, often spending what seemed like hours perched at the side of the counter speaking to Sadie and Lars - much to Lars' distaste. 

Steven spent a lot of his childhood growing up alone in a household full of overprotective aunts. They all loved him very much, but that didn't mean they couldn't be overbearing at times. After his mother died when he was born, his aunts took it upon themselves to keep Steven safe. This meant smothering him in just about everything, including homeschooling him for his own safety. 

He was dealing with his own issues of being a teenager - alone. It was sometimes just nice to head into the coffee shop and order something as a way of being able to have some kind of interaction with people who weren't his aunts or father. 

Even if that did mean ordering something incredibly random as a way to keep himself interesting, taking a few sips and throwing it in the trash when he got home. He didn't like being wasteful, but there was no way he could drink the concoctions the baristas had created for him. His strange orders were good conversation starters and it also meant the baristas wouldn't have ever forgotten about him. 

"Chill out, Sadie. It's only Steven Universe." Lars raised his hands as a way to defend himself against Sadie's words. 

"It doesn't matter who it is." Sadie furrowed her eyebrows, occasionally getting more than sick with Lars' attitude towards certain people. 

Connie pressed her index fingers together, awkwardly stood between the two senior members of staff. She knew her whole summer would probably be spent doing just that - standing awkwardly between the two. She didn't quite mind, excited that she would have the opportunity to meet all kinds of people. Even more people like Steven. 

However, considering the argument that had arisen from his visit - it didn't seem as if there was another customer quite like Steven.

Steven was unique...


	2. Classic Cappuccino

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things get a little messy down at Beach City Coffee.
> 
> No, ew, not like that you fiend! You'll see what I mean...

Connie was beginning to get used to working in the coffee shop. It had been just around two weeks since she had started on her first shift, she didn’t work every day, but she had worked enough to figure out the basics. 

As it crept closer and closer to the summer, Connie noticed the amount of studying in which she needed to do outside of school was beginning to reduce. Connie enjoyed work as a way of giving herself a break from the studying that forever seemed to plague her existence. Of course, she did somewhat enjoy studying, but the way that her parents had made out that passing her exams was a matter of life and death scared her into believing that studying was more important than anything in life. Even her own happiness. 

Connie knew that over the next year she would have to work hard if she wanted to get into the colleges that she was considering. It would have been nice to travel across the country - finally able to escape from the town that she had been stuck in all of her life. 

There was nothing for Connie in Beach City. It wasn’t as if she had any friends other than the ones that she had made in school and even then, they were the kind of friends who stated they wanted to hang out and then never took any steps to try and make that happen. If Connie even attempted to ask to hang out with someone, she was usually shut down with a poor excuse. 

Why was it so difficult to not be considered a social outcast? It wasn’t as if Connie had ever done anything wrong to deserve that kind of abandonment. There was no need for people to mistreat her that way. 

Perhaps college would have treated her better? A way of escaping from Beach City and reestablishing herself as someone entirely new. 

Connie loved that idea. A fresh start. 

Connie politely smiled at the customers sat in the booth opposite the window, both members of their party sipping quietly on the coffees that they had ordered. Connie stepped past them, beginning to wipe down the table opposite. 

As much as the employees enjoyed standing around doing near to nothing, chatting about all kinds of things, they always had work to do. With that being said, Connie had spent at least an hour of her shift last week with Lars and Sadie debating their favourite flavours of ice cream.

Lars was insistent that the only reason they got to stand around speaking to one another during the offseason was a reward for how busy they got throughout the summer. As much as Beach City was a top tourist destination on the coast, Connie couldn’t have quite imagined the independent coffee shop to be so busy that people felt inclined to line up around the block for the subpar coffee. 

Sadie didn’t quite agree with the sentiment, although had no issue in sitting on the counter attempting to convince the rest of the party that mint chocolate chip was the superior flavour of ice cream. Lars was pretty against the idea with his vote of strawberry. Connie managed to chip in her input of pistachio before she sat and watched Lars and Sadie bicker at each other about the subject. 

Connie continued to wipe down the tables, it had proven to be one of the busiest days that she had experienced yet. It wasn’t anything that she couldn’t have handled, but it seemed that the floor got slightly messier than usual with them caught up behind the counter. It was only Lars and Connie working as Sadie had the day off. During a slight dip in service, Connie took that as a chance to use her initiative and clear the tables as a precaution for if another wave of customers were to hit. 

As the days continued to get busier, Connie was somewhat excited for the summer to roll around the corner. She was happy to put in as many hours as she needed to earn as much money as possible. It also meant she was able to fill her summer which would have otherwise been spent sat at home binge watching inaccurate medical shows for twelve hours a day.

The teenager grabbed the spray bottle off the table and turned around rapidly, not quite expecting anyone to be behind her. Connie jumped as the presence of another human being came into her field of view - perhaps slightly too close. Close enough that she felt a sudden splash of cold liquid spill onto the top of her apron as the person turned around with a drink in their hand. 

“Oh no! I am so sorry. Oh no, where are the napkins?” A somewhat familiar voice to Connie spoke in a panic. 

Connie stared down at her apron now covered in what looked to be an uncertain blend of cold coffee and various syrups. Of course, this would have happened to Connie, out of every person in existence. Only Connie would have had enough bad luck that she would have to change out of her apron because she somehow managed to get an entire cup of coffee spilt on her. 

Why did the world curse her like this? 

“It’s okay! I’m fine!” Connie lied through her teeth, unable to look at anything other than the huge stain on the front of her apron. The brown colour of the apron allowed the coffee to blend in with the fabric, what didn’t blend in quite so well was the whipped cream and syrup. 

Connie noticed a hand come into her field of view, it was holding a bunch of napkins out for her to take. Connie grabbed ahold of the napkins and began to rub them against the syrupy mess. Was she going to get told off for bumping into a customer? It was only her second week working there! 

“Wait! You should probably dab it instead - I heard that wiping it can make stains worse.” The voice spoke softly in a somewhat awkward and shaky tone. 

Connie noticed the figure placing the remainder of the cup of coffee down on the table behind them. She slowly stopped wiping the coffee, glancing upwards towards the figure that she had somehow managed to clumsily bump into. 

There stood in front of her was the one and only Steven Universe. The bizarre customer that had come in the week before for what seemed like the strangest order of coffee she had ever heard of. She hadn’t seen him since their first interaction and certainly hadn’t noticed him enter the shop, she had been far too distracted with cleaning the tables. 

Connie instantly thought about how he could have possibly still been alive after consuming that sugary drink the previous week.

“Oh...thanks.” Connie nervously allowed the words to spill from between her lips, the presence of the strange teenager somehow melting her. 

Her hand had frozen, unable to dab the syrup off the apron as she stared towards the strange customer with wide eyes. They were around the same height as one another, Connie potentially even being a slight bit taller than the boy. For a split second, they shared a moment of silence - unable to look away from one another. 

Steven was the first to look away, shoving his hands into his pockets, unsure as to why the girl in front of him had stopped attempting to get the blend of coffee and syrup off her apron. 

“Do you need more napkins? I can get you more napkins!” Steven offered, glancing around the shop for next nearest napkin dispenser despite knowing the exact locations of them all. Potentially knowing them a lot better than Connie.

“No no, it’s okay. I have plenty.” Connie half-smiled as she lifted up the handful of bunched up napkins that he had essentially thrown at her in a panic. She was rather irritated with the fact that something like this had happened so soon after starting to work there. Unlucky accidents such as this one would have been a lot better a few months down the line. 

“Oh...okay.” Steven hovered as he bounced on his heels, unsure on what to do as he watched Connie attempt to clean the syrup. “It’s a good job it was only cold coffee.” Steven continued, laughing nervously as he spoke. 

With Connie being too distracted by the mess, she was unable to hear Steven’s statements. She was more worried about getting the mess off the apron than she was to hear the words of the teenager who had thrown his drink over her. 

“How much syrup was in there?” Connie scowled down at the syrup on the apron, she had already used a large amount of the napkins simply on the gooey substance. She would have had to clean the table again from the vast amount of dirty napkins she was throwing on there. 

“I’m sorry.” Steven couldn’t even answer the question as he scratched the back of his neck, wanting some sort of escape from the situation he had found himself in. Trust Steven to get himself in trouble like that - nothing was ever going to be easy. 

“It’s okay! It’s just...there’s a lot.” Connie noticed the deflation in his tone, looking back up at the acquaintance who had a look of sympathy spread across his face. 

“Is there anything I can do? I feel terrible.” 

“Don’t worry about it! Really - I’m fine. These things happen.” Connie insisted, she didn’t need anything from him. It was an accident. The last thing she wanted being some guy she didn’t know seem to think he owed her something. 

“Steven, what the heck have you done now?” Lars shouted from behind the counter, noticing Connie’s embarrassed expression across her face and her desperate attempt to get rid of the coffee that was sat on her apron. He didn’t need everyone in the coffee shop to turn around on the command of his voice, but it seemed as if everyone wanted to stare only making Connie more flustered. 

“It’s okay, it was just an accident!” Connie smiled, stepping past Steven and heading back to behind the counter. If there was going to be an altercation caused by the accident that she was involved in she didn’t want to be in the middle. She barely knew Steven and she barely knew Lars, she wasn’t quite sure what kind of history they held together. 

Steven turned to watch Connie disappear behind the counter, looking up to see Lars scowling down at him. It was truly an accident, it wasn’t as if he had purposefully spilt the drink over the unsuspecting victim. 

Steven was just...prone to making mistakes. 

The teenager raised both his hands in his own defence, the coffee shop slowly dialling down to a quiet tone as everyone discovered that the altercation wasn’t quite as interesting as first anticipated. There was a sinking feeling in Steven’s chest, one that felt as if the ground was going to open up and swallow him whole. A part of him felt as if that would have been the correct option considering the circumstance. 

Lars furrowed his eyebrows as Connie came to join him around the counter, noticing the mess that the teenager had made of the apron. They probably had a spare apron out the back - but that wasn’t the point. Lars shouldn’t have needed to get Connie a new apron in the first place. 

Lars occasionally got frustrated with the amount of time that Steven spent inside of the coffee shop. Of course, he was a paying customer, but he always seemed to do more harm than he did good. With that being said, the most harm in which he inflicted was mostly just annoying Lars. 

Steven grabbed ahold of the half-empty cup and wet napkins and walked them over to the trash can on the opposite side of the room. He threw the remainder of the drink away, he didn’t quite feel like drinking the sugary beverage anymore. The craving had been washed away by the embarrassing experience in which he had made a fool of himself in front of the new employee. 

There was no reason why she couldn’t have been one of his new friends and now he had completely ruined that opportunity. He only really went inside of the shop to have some kind of interaction with people his own age and now he felt like too much of an idiot to do even that. 

Steven ruined everything and he hated himself for it. 

“I can’t believe he would do that. Everything he does is to seek attention.” Lars grumbled as he wiped the top of the counter with a wet cloth, looking back at Connie and noticing her taking off the apron, her attempts of trying to get the coffee off continuing to be unsuccessful. 

“I don’t think he meant to. He looks kind of...sad.” Connie mentioned, once again sticking up for the boy as she watched him throw the drink in the trash, bury his hands in his pockets and exit the shop with his head held low. 

For someone who always seemed so happy, seeing Steven that way was unnerving. The customer had been so perky upon their first interaction. It didn’t seem right for him to be acting that way. 

“He’ll get over himself. Let me see if we’ve got another apron.” Lars threw the cloth on the side and stormed off into the back room of the coffee shop, he was incredibly unimpressed with their most irritating customer’s treatment towards their new employee. 

Connie, on the other hand, felt bad about the whole experience. Was there any need for Lars to be so harsh when it came to Steven? There was no need to be as mean as he was towards the teenager. 

Connie once again watched Steven leave the building, instead of walking across the beach, this time he headed right and made his way down the boardwalk. Connie was unsure as to where he was going this time, perhaps it was his way home? 

“Here you go, put this on. Hopefully, this one won’t be ruined by that moron.” Lars threw the clean apron towards Connie, she managed to catch it with quick reflexes, still focused more on what was going on outside. Pondering on where the teenager may have gone. 

“Can I...go on my break?” Connie questioned as she stared up towards Lars. 

Lars looked down at her and cocked an eyebrow. 

“You don’t ask for much - do you?” 

“I am due one.” Connie shrugged, prepared to recite her reading on breaks within the workplace if the request was ever denied. With it being Sadie’s day off it was just the two of them looking after the shop. 

“Fine. Fifteen minutes - whilst it’s quiet.” Lars sighed, picking the cloth back up off the counter and continuing the work that he cared about more about than reality depicted. 

Connie gave Lars a thumbs up before making her way through the back of the shop. She threw the dirty apron on the side and hung the new apron and cap on the hook she had been provided upon employment. Connie exited the building through the back, finding herself around the back of the building with the large trash can that she had discovered she struggled to lift open by herself. 

Connie had the sudden urge to chase after the boy. Never in her life had she chased after a boy before. Although, it wasn’t like romantic films depicted. This wasn’t quite like that. 

Instead, she was chasing after the boy to apologise. Her heart ached at the view she had gotten from the disheartened look on his face once Lars had scowled at him. Although she didn’t know the customer, her conscious was telling her that she needed to apologise on behalf of her colleague. The whole scenario was trivial and she didn’t want anyone to feel bad about it. 

Connie began to walk down the boardwalk in the same direction as the teenager in both a hoodie and jacket had taken. The weather was starting to pick up which made her question the boy’s choice in fashion, seeing she was already rather warm in the white short-sleeved shirt she was wearing for work. 

It didn’t take her long to notice the pink varsity jacket, sticking out like a sore thumb in the otherwise dull coloured boardwalk. The boy sat on a bench, staring out at the ocean before him, the black snapback covering the dark and vacant expression on his face. 

Connie stepped closer, not wanting to scare the young man she approached from the side, nervously holding her hands together. The boy hadn’t noticed that she was there, too busy staring at the ocean. Connie wondered what he could have possibly been thinking about, his mind a million miles away. 

“Um...it’s Steven - right?” Connie finally built up the courage to speak. 

Steven removed himself from the trance he was in, turning to look up towards the barista that was standing before him. Steven was shocked to see her, especially after just embarrassing himself within the coffee shop that he was currently planning on never visiting again. He knew the plan never would have lasted - he enjoyed going there too much. 

Steven glanced down to the place on Connie’s chest where the name badge usually sat. Unfortunately, after taking the apron off she had managed to abandon the badge leaving Steven to remember the name without any aid. Steven knew the name. The same name he had recently been finding it hard to get out of his head. 

“Yeah. You’re Connie.” Steven held onto his knees as he sat up straight on the bench. 

“That’s me. I just wanted to say not to worry about the coffee thing. It’s fine - really. Sorry for bumping into you, I need to learn to be more careful.” Connie apologised, not wanting the boy to feel any kind of guilt about the scenario. 

“It wasn’t your fault. I should be sorry, not you!” Steven’s face dropped at the remark. Connie shouldn’t have had to take the fall for his incompetence. 

“Well, either way, I think it’s safe to say I am pretty glad you seem to prefer ice coffee.” Connie smiled down at Steven, blushing slightly as she spoke, barely able to keep up the eye contact. 

Steven stared up at the girl. Had she noticed his slight remark about hot coffee earlier in the store? No, of course not. She was just being nice. Steven couldn’t help but hold his gaze for slightly too long before chuckling lightly as if it took a short while for the joke to process within his mind. 

“I’m glad nobody got hurt.” Steven grinned.

Connie wasn’t quite sure what else she wanted to say, only wanting to use the time to make sure that he was going to be okay. The way that he looked had irked her, she didn’t want him to be upset about the event. It wasn’t as if it was anyone’s fault. It was an accident. 

Steven sat in silence, awaiting Connie to say something else on the subject. Connie couldn’t quite think of a way to end the conversation that wouldn’t have been a prime example of her awkwardness. 

“So...was there anything else on your mind?” Steven questioned, coming across as slightly impatient and unsure as to why the barista was still hanging around after making their peace. Why would she have even come out to apologise to him in the first place? That showed Steven how nice of a person she seemed to be. 

Connie flushed red, realising she had been lingering for far too long. 

“No, I should probably be getting back to work. See you around.” Connie spoke quickly, unsure on how to draw the conversation to a close. She pointed behind her towards the coffee shop as if Steven didn’t already know where she worked. 

“Oh okay. See you soon.” Steven wasn’t quite ready to say goodbye, a part of him hoping that she would have stuck around for a bit longer. It would have been nice to get to know each other. He didn’t know anything about her other than she worked at his favourite coffee shop and she was incredibly...pretty. 

Connie waved before turning around and heading back to the coffee shop, she wasn’t quite sure how much of her break she had taken, accidentally forgetting to look at the clock on the wall before she left. Either way, she knew it was best to return to Lars sooner rather than later. 

Steven stood up and watched her leave, a million things spiralling through his mind. 

“Connie, wait!” The teenager suddenly shouted. Connie stopped in her tracks, turning around and noticing the boy take a few steps closer. 

“Yeah?” 

“Thanks.” Steven mumbled shyly, holding himself as he spoke. 

Connie noticed his nervous body language, something that she often found herself doing. It was hard to ignore. 

Although she hadn’t thought much about the customer that ordered far more syrups than the average human being could handle, he had suddenly become her sole focus. She knew that the young man would come into the coffee shop at some point to make an obscene order and she knew it would be then in which she would hopefully think about him again. She certainly didn’t want it to be something that she thought about far too often that it became distracting. 

“No problem!” Connie smiled back at him before quickly turning around and heading back towards the coffee shop. She dipped her head as a way to speed up her pace away from the boy. 

Steven couldn’t help but show off a small smile as he repositioned himself in such a way his hands made their way to his jacket pockets. 

He sighed deeply with relief. 

Maybe he hadn’t quite made as much of a fool out of himself as he first thought?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is so much fun! 
> 
> I hope everyone is enjoying reading this as much as I'm enjoying writing it. Also discovered that I love writing the Sadie and Lars dynamic sooooo there will be plenty more of that to come!!! 
> 
> Not sure how often updates will be, it'll probably just be as and when I can write it. Please subscribe for them updates!


	3. Lemon Tea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven asks for some advice from Lars and Sadie. 
> 
> Mostly wanting Sadie's input...but Lars has some 'useful' suggestions too. 
> 
> He should probably just shut up.

“So then, BAM!, the coffee goes everywhere and Connie’s practically drenched from head to toe in the coffee I had just made. What a waste. I worked hard on that! Steven walked out, he was all sad looking. Luckily, we had a spare apron out the back, else it would have been Steven’s fault for us not following the uniform.” Lars scoffed as he retold the exaggerated story to Sadie who was sweeping the floor behind the counter. 

“Is Connie okay?” Sadie questioned as she stopped sweeping to gain a better understanding of the situation she seemed to have missed on her day off. 

“Oh yeah - took it like a champ. Not like you that one time you got coffee all over your-” Lars leant against the counter, taking his usual prime position in doing just about nothing as he watched Sadie do everything. 

“Shut up, Lars!” Sadie snapped. 

“Woah, I was going to say pants! Whatever, man.” Lars shrugged with a smug expression. Sadie shook her head, unimpressed with his maturity. 

“How about Steven? Is he okay? You said he looked sad.” Sadie diverted her concern for Steven’s cause, wanting nothing more than to ignore Lars’ rash comments. 

“Yeah, dude was just as depressed as usual.” 

“You’ve really got to start being nicer to him.”

“Why? He’s so irritating!” Lars clenched his fists together, grimacing at the idea of being nice to the person who got on his nerves more often than not. 

“You don’t know what he’s been through. Cut him some slack.” Sadie was sympathetic towards Steven’s situation. Steven had briefly told Sadie about what had happened throughout his life, just enough for her to get a clear picture and a reason for his change in moods. 

Steven often came into the shop incredibly perky and happy, only to sit around and mope, sitting in the corner of the cafe or annoying Lars up at the counter. He didn’t have much else to fill up his day, occasionally just enjoying the company of the passers-by as he listened to them order their drinks. 

“I’ll cut him some slack when he stops annoying the piss out of me.” Lars frowned as he watched Sadie sigh, continuing to sweep the floor. 

As if on cue, it was only moments after their conversation that Steven Universe strolled through the door of the coffee shop, alerting the customers and staff inside as the bell above the door sounded out loudly. 

Lars’ eyes practically rolled hard enough to see his own brain as the teen entered. Sadie propped the broom up against the counter as Steven walked towards them. 

He seemed somewhat absent-minded as he glanced around the shop, his hands neatly tucked into his pockets and the snapback still sat on the top of his head suppressed the vast amount of curly hair hidden underneath. 

“Hey, Steven!” Sadie positioned herself at the cash register, ready to press a bizarre amount of buttons as a way of inputting his strange order. 

“Where’s Connie?” Steven leant on the counter, peering around the large coffee machine as a way to see if Connie was tucked behind. Instead, he was greeted by an unimpressed Lars. Sadie was surprised by Steven being considerably rude as he bluntly asked the question. 

“She’s not working today.” Sadie stated. 

“Oh…” Steven immediately stopped, his entire body relaxing as he removed himself from the counter and stood still. He glanced around the room once more, for the first time in forever unable to find an excuse for being inside of the shop. 

“Did you want to order?” Sadie attempted to prompt him, unsure as to why he had suddenly become so interested in their new employee. 

“When is she working next?” Steven questioned, unable to remove his thoughts from his reasoning behind visiting the shop. 

Lars poked his head out from around the corner of the coffee machine, finally becoming visible to Steven. Steven sweated nervously as he asked the questions, he hadn’t quite prepared what he was going to say if Connie hadn’t exactly been there. 

“Why? Are you stalking her or something?” Lars snorted. 

“No!” Steven was quick to shout back, clenching his fist under the cover of his jacket pockets.

“Do you like her?” Lars asked, interested to know if work was going to become incredibly more exciting if that was the case. 

“No!” Steven looked off to the side, unable to make eye contact as he blushed. 

“Oh my god, you like her!” Lars began to laugh loudly. 

“I don’t! Well...no...maybe...I don’t know!” Steven huffed, incredibly frustrated with Lars’ behaviour. 

“Aw, Steven! That’s so sweet!” Sadie swooned as the teenager in front of her continued to turn a bright shade of red. 

“Oh boy, wait until Connie hears about this!” Lars jeered, tears nearly forming in his eyes from the amount he was laughing. 

“No! Please don’t tell Connie! I don’t even know her!” Steven suddenly panicked, throwing his hands in front of him. He was terrified that Lars was going to tell her. He couldn’t let that happen. 

Connie would think that he was a weirdo, he didn’t know her at all - but he wanted to. He wanted to get to know the new barista. There was something about her smile and the soft tone in her voice that caused Steven to think about her more often than not. Perhaps it was love or perhaps it was just the emotions that came with being a teenage boy? Steven wasn’t sure, but he wanted to find out. He wanted to befriend Connie. 

“Don’t worry, Steven. Lars won’t tell her - will you?” Sadie shot Lars a look of daggers causing him to back down on his pursuit of teasing Steven. 

“Probably not.” Lars mumbled. 

“You won’t.” Sadie reiterated. 

“I won’t.” Lars reluctantly answered, he hated it when Sadie had the ability to completely shut him down. Sadie, on the other hand - loved it. 

“She’s working tomorrow.” Sadie finally had the answer to Steven’s question. 

Steven’s face lit up, that was all he wanted to know. What he didn’t know was what he could have possibly said to Connie when he next saw her. Everything he came up within his mind was far too forward. He didn’t want to ask her on a date - that may have been considered awkward and rude. After all, they didn’t know each other in the slightest. 

Who was Steven kidding? As much as he was a believer in love at first sight, there were some logistically challenging examples as to why that may not have been such a great idea. 

However, it seemed as if the first time in which he had met eyes with Connie he had felt something different. He hadn’t met eyes with her the same way that he had met eyes with anyone else in his life. There was something entirely new there and Steven was desperate to find out what it was.

“What are you going to do? Ask her out?” Lars became somewhat curious about what Steven intended to do. 

“Ask her out?”

“Y’know...like on a date?” Lars queried as he stood behind Sadie awaiting a response from the dumbfounded teenager who wasn’t quite aware of what he was doing. 

“I was just going to speak to her.” Steven shrugged.

“About what?” Lars began to interrogate. 

“I don’t know...stuff.” 

“Steven, you don’t know a thing about women - do you?” Lars smirked, unable to hold it in. 

“And you do?” Sadie glanced behind her and snorted at Lars. Her much taller counterpart folded his arms and huffed back down at Sadie. 

Lars was right - Steven didn’t know a thing about women. He had never asked anyone out on a date before. He had never even liked someone before...he wasn’t even quite sure what it felt to like someone. Did he like Connie? He had no idea what it was supposed to feel like. 

“Look, Steven, all you need to do is be yourself. Connie seems like the sort of person who values honesty - so just be you.” Sadie gave much more sound advice than Lars could have ever provided. 

“Be...myself?” Steven touched his chest. Being himself? He didn’t exactly like himself. There was so much wrong with him…

He was incredibly self-conscious, his hair was too uncontrollably fluffy so he tried hiding it under a hat, he hated the way that his body looked so wore an excessive amount of clothes to hide the fat around his stomach despite being incredibly warm. He hated the way that he walked, the way that he spoke, the way that he interacted with others - he hated himself. 

“Ooo tough luck there, buddy.” Lars sniggered, immediately regretting his choice of words as Sadie’s elbow violently jabbed into his stomach. Sadie continued to look towards Steven as Lars gasped in pain. 

“Yeah, you’ll do great. We’ll be, well, I’ll be your wingman. Wing...woman.” Sadie smiled, attempting to calm Steven’s nerves. Steven smiled back, he still didn’t feel quite prepared to speak to Connie. What was he going to say? 

“Hey, maybe you could ask if she wanted to go to Beach-a-palooza with you?” Lars choked out the words, still attempting to regain strength after Sadie’s well-timed blow to the stomach. He would have fought back, but he probably deserved it. 

“Hey! That’s actually a pretty good idea.” Sadie inputted, somewhat surprised with Lars' ability to come up with a single good suggestion. 

“I never really thought about that.” Steven scratched the back of his neck. 

“It would be amazing. You could hang out between the sets of music, dance together, eat food together, you could even stay up super late and watch the stars. It would be so romantic!” Sadie gushed as she suddenly began to envision herself there. Lars glanced down at her, infatuated with how specific her desires were. 

“Does it have to be...romantic?” Steven was unsure of how Connie may have reacted if he started to treat it less like getting to know her and more like a date. 

Wasn’t that what a date was though? Getting to know someone? 

Steven had no idea. Daytime television had failed him once again. 

“Do you want to get your noodle wet or not?” Lars suddenly butted in. 

“Lars! Can you be quiet for one second? Is that so much to ask?” Sadie raised her voice in frustration, unable to turn around to face Lars. 

“My...noodle?” Steven’s eyes widened, suddenly staring down at his shoes as he realised what Lars was referring to. 

“Ignore him, Steven. You do whatever you’re comfortable with.” Sadie assured, attempting to ignore the stupid comments that continuously rolled out of Lars’ mouth. 

He was certain that both of them had suddenly gotten the completely wrong idea about him wanting to befriend Connie. It wasn’t...like...that!

Sure, he found her pretty, but he hadn’t thought about anything other than attempting to be her friend. He could have used another friend and he would have loved for Connie to be that person. He wanted them to hang out and see if they enjoyed each other’s company - that would have been nice. 

It would have been great to be able to invite her to Beach-a-palooza with him - without trying to make it seem as if it was a date. He didn’t want it to be a date. He didn’t want to scare her. 

Why was it so hard to make friends? 

“I think I’m going to see if she wants to go to Beach-a-palooza.” Steven spoke his plan aloud as Lars and Sadie both smiled in unison. He didn’t expect Lars to smile. 

Steven internally prayed that none of his family wanted to go to the town event with him this year. Usually, his dad was inclined to go with him. They had even performed on the stage together when he was a kid - a memory that he held quite close to his heart. 

The last thing he wanted being for his aunts to be there to embarrass him. Especially if he went to the event with a girl...he would never have heard the end of it. 

As much as Steven loved his family, he didn’t want them to follow him wherever he went. Of course, he had his own time to do whatever he wanted and he even had a car that he used to mostly drive around aimlessly. 

Steven probably should have gotten himself a job, he was far past that age in which he needed to start living independently. However, he had pretty much had that independence since he was a kid. There was so much he did alone…

With his dad being a pretty famous musician he spent a lot of his time away from home, leaving Steven with all three of his aunts. He had the option to go on tour with his father multiple times but often denied. It wasn’t the fact that he didn’t want to go, it was more or less the fact he was afraid of that change. He didn’t quite like the idea of leaving Beach City for an extended holiday crammed into a tour bus. If he wanted to go anywhere - it would have been on his own terms. 

Greg Universe provided for Steven by coming back and visiting as often as possible, but most of his temporary affection came from video calls and cheques that Steven could cash in to spend on...coffee. 

“Good for you, Steven.” Sadie smiled, excited that Steven looked happy about his decision. Sadie was starting to hope that whatever Steven was going to ask that Connie would have said yes. It would have made the teenager’s year. 

Steven needed a slice of happiness in his life. 

“This’ll be entertaining...” Lars commented, unable to help himself. He was more than excited to see how the interaction between the new employee and their weirdest customer would have gone down. 

“Did you want to order anything?” Sadie finally asked once again, Steven still stood in front of the cash register. He was silently pondering on the discovery he had made when it came to what he was going to say the next day. 

“Do you guys still have pineapple smoothies?” Steven suddenly perked up. 

“What!?!” Lars practically shouted. 

“Y’know...a pineapple. It’s a fruit. A smoothie is like-” Steven began to explain. 

“I know what a pineapple smoothie is! What I don’t know is why you, Steven Universe, would want to order one!” Lars huffed, more frustrated than ever with Steven. He made Lars want to pull his own hair out. 

Steven stared at the counter for a few seconds, Lars breathing heavily with anger as Sadie covered her mouth and sniggered at the comments thrown between both of the boys. 

“I just feel like having a smoothie.” Steven shrugged. 

“You are so weird!” Lars sighed as he pressed his hands against the top of his head in aggravation before heading over to the workstation to prepare the drink. 

Sadie smiled as she inputted the order on the cash register and Steven took out his card to tap on the chip and pin device sat in front of him. 

Steven didn’t quite want to inject his body with the syrupy poison he usually subjected himself to. For some reason, he felt better about himself. In a way, there was a sense of happiness and excitement that started to hang over him. He couldn’t quite wait for tomorrow. 

“You know that smoothies have just about as much sugar in as your usual orders - right?” Sadie leant over the counter and whispered towards Steven, somehow reading his mind as to why he may have ordered something different for a change. 

“It’s just a brighter colour - for a brighter future.” Steven grinned, saying the most positive phrase to come from his mouth in days. 

“One...pineapple smoothie.” Lars grimaced at Steven’s grin as he placed the drink on the counter in front of him. 

“Thanks, Lars! See you both tomorrow.” Steven nodded as he grabbed the drink and headed out the door, a slight skip in his step as he walked. 

Steven was excited. Although he didn’t quite know the outcome of his question just yet - his mind was suddenly filled with positive thoughts. 

“Man, I hope she says yes.” Lars mumbled as he watched Steven disappear. 

Sadie smiled up at Lars and poked him in his side. 

“Aw, you care about Steven!” 

“No, I don’t! It’s for our own sake if Connie says no then we’ll be forced to listen to him weeping in the corner on all her days off.” Lars selfishly defended. 

There was no doubt in saying that he was correct though. It would have taken a lot out of Steven if she rejected his idea of a friendly get-together. He most certainly would have taken a cup full of syrup then. 

“Let’s just be supportive. Okay?” Sadie attempted to get Lars to see the soft side of the situation. It wasn’t always easy, but she seemed to be the only one who could get through to him in a way in which it stuck. 

“Fine…” Lars sighed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This whole AU is an elaborate slow burn shitpost. I am so sorry. 
> 
> You'll love it.


	4. Iced Chai Tea Latte

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven nervously enters Beach City Coffee with one task - to ask Connie if she wants to go to Beach-a-palooza on Saturday. 
> 
> Let's just hope she accepts...

Connie was happy with her position within the coffee shop, starting to get used to the everyday things that needed to be checked or cleaned. Connie took quite a lot of pride in the tasks that she completed, which included restocking the straws and sorting out the food in front of the cash register by their sell-by dates. 

Lars and Sadie were incredibly impressed with the work that she put in, learning something new on the job every day. They were somewhat embarrassed to admit her work ethic was incredible compared to them both. 

Lars and Sadie held their tongue all day, knowing this to have been the day in which they were expecting Steven Universe to walk through the door and propose a date to Connie. It wasn’t a date - or was it? 

It was simply a way of getting to know each other a little better. 

A date? 

Connie was humming away to the song that was on the radio, incredibly invested in the work that she was doing behind the counter cleaning out one of the coffee machines. Lars had taught her the best way to do it and she was pretty happy with completing the tedious task. If Connie liked doing the job, neither of them were going to complain. They both hated it. 

Lars and Sadie’s heads poked up in unison every time that the bell on the door rang, patiently awaiting Steven. They were both more nervous about the scenario that would have played out than Steven. 

Finally, after the morning rush had finally come to a halt there was another ring above the door. This time, a skittish looking teenager stepped through the door in his usual attire - this time the snapback hanging lower as a way to help cover his face. Lars and Sadie both exchanged looked of excitement as he walked through the door. 

“Hey Connie, can you hop on the register?” Lars grinned, attempting to cement the plan into action. 

Connie turned to see Lars stood behind her. Lars was her supervisor, it wasn’t as if she could deny any of his requests. Despite being stuck in the job at hand she wiped her hands before placing the cloth she was about to use for cleaning on the side. 

“Sure thing!” Connie smiled, somewhat irritable that Lars had taken her away from the task. She was enjoying herself a little too much. 

Connie stepped over to the cash register, looking forward and noticing a familiar combination of clothing walking towards her. Was that...Steven? She hoped that he was no longer embarrassed about spilling the drink and wasn’t too creeped out that Connie had gone to apologise for it...practically chasing him down the street. She was only trying to be nice. 

Connie opened up a particular menu on the cash register, knowing that Steven’s orders were usually rather strange she was ready to tap a load of buttons in quick succession if need be. She was proud to say that she had started to learn just a few of the regulars frequent coffee purchasing habits. 

What Connie couldn’t quite see was that as Steven stepped closer towards her he was in fact sweating profusely. He had thought about how smooth the conversation would have gone all night and yet now that Connie was right in front of him...he didn’t think he could have quite pulled it off as well. 

“Hi Steven, what can I get you today?” Connie smiled, putting on the best customer service voice anyone had ever heard. 

Steven slowly raised his head, revealing his incredibly nervous looking face. Sweat beaded down the side of his face as his hands shook violent within his jacket pockets. Oh no - what was he going to say? His mind had thought out this scenario in so many different ways overnight and yet this reality was not included in anything he had envisioned. 

“Um...hi Connie!” Steven replied in a shaky tone. What was he doing? He was just making a fool of himself. 

“Are you okay? You look like you’re about to throw up.” Connie gave Steven a serious look of concern. 

Steven looked past Connie only to see both Lars and Sadie stood further into the kitchen both with incredibly different facial expressions. Sadie was full of encouragement, giving Steven the thumbs up. Lars, on the other hand, had his head in the palm of his hand, covering his eyes in sheer second-hand embarrassment. 

“I’m...maybe...no - I’m good.” Steven chuckled, swallowing his nerves. There was a slight possibility he could have thrown up from the sheer amount of anxiety within him. He hoped not. 

“Are you sure? You look kind of-”

“No! I’m good.” Steven laughed awkwardly, waving his hands in front of him. 

Connie couldn’t help but feel concerned for the young man, he certainly didn’t look...well. 

“Well, do you still want to order?” Connie questioned, not realising the vast amount of hand signals that Lars and Sadie were directing towards Steven right behind her. 

Steven couldn’t quite concentrate, he was unsure of the best way to go about this. It certainly put a lot of pressure on himself - especially with Lars and Sadie acting like crazy people in the background. 

“Nice weather we’re having!” Steven suddenly blurted out, unable to control himself. Lars had only just removed his hand away from his face but slammed it rather violently back into place upon hearing Steven’s words. 

“Yes, it is pretty nice.” Connie chuckled. What was going on? Why was Steven acting so strange - was he always like this? He didn’t seem like it before…

Steven gulped as he watched Sadie give him an uneasy look. Lars was urgently prompting for Steven to cut the conversation, signally by repeatedly slashing his hand against his neck. He needed Steven to bail before he embarrassed himself any further. 

“I’m going to go and sit down for a bit...need to figure out what I’m going to be ordering today.” Steven wiped the sweat away from his forehead as Connie watched him teeter on his heels. 

“Oh, okay - well, let me know when you want something and I’ll make it for you.” Connie wanted to make more of Steven’s orders, they were interesting to make, to say the least. She enjoyed mixing the syrup, especially when it wasn’t going to end up on the front of her apron. 

Steven thought he was going to pass out. Why had such a simple task become so difficult? There was no need for any of this nonsense, why couldn’t he have just asked her if she wanted to hang out at the festival on the weekend? It was that simple. It didn’t have to mean anything. 

Steven lowered the cap on the top of his head as a way of hiding his face, even if it was only a little bit. He was completely embarrassed and had ruined his chance to become friends with the person who for some reason made him incredibly nervous. Why did she make him nervous? He had never experienced that when attempting to make friends before. 

Connie watched as Steven trailed off into the corner of the shop, finding his position in a booth that was out of the way of everyone else. He had acting rather strangely - even for the person who put one hundred pumps of syrup in his coffee. 

Connie made her way back to the machine to continue cleaning it, keeping an eye out for the cash register in case someone else was to come and place an order. Lars and Sadie stepped out of her way, Steven’s interaction certainly hadn’t gone as either of them had expected. 

Lars huffed as he picked up his pace and made his way over to the table in which the sulking young man was sat with his head in his hands. Lars leant down and pushed him on the shoulder causing Steven to jolt slightly. 

“What are you doing? Go and talk to her!” Lars insisted, aggravated by the fact that Steven didn’t even try. Especially not with the same amount of confidence he had the previous day. 

“I can’t do it!”

“Why the hell not?” 

“I...what if she says no?” Steven bit down on his bottom lip as a way of reducing the tremble. 

“Steven, you live in Beach City. Do you know how many hot babes pass through here every summer? Loads. Don’t get caught up on one babe when you could have multiple babes.” Lars explained as he turned away from Steven, leaning against the table as he spoke. He suddenly found himself looking at Sadie behind the counter, immediately diverting his eyes when realising he was staring for a bit longer than usual. 

“Babes?”

“Hot women, Steven.”

“I mean, Connie is very pretty - but I was more interested in getting to know her first. I don’t know anything about her. Isn’t it wrong to make assumptions on people based on their looks?” Steven looked up at Lars, going to him for advice wasn’t his first port of call, but it was all he was able to work with at the time. 

Lars covered his mouth before sighing. Steven still had a lot to learn. Lars didn’t want to admit that Steven was right. 

“You need to take the dive, just ask her. Otherwise, you could spend years bottling it up and regret not spending that time with them instead.” Lars folded over his arms, staring behind the counter a little deeper than before. 

“Is that how you feel about Sadie?”

“What?!?” Lars immediately turned around, staring down at Steven who had a look of innocence spread across his face. 

“It’s kind of obvious.” Steven shrugged his shoulders. 

“I don’t like Sadie!” Lars whispered through his teeth in an aggressive tone. 

Steven couldn’t help but smile slightly, feeling somewhat better about his situation. Of course, Lars would have been defensive about something like that. Lars wasn’t exactly one for wanting to share any of his emotions with anyone, but Steven had the ability to see just how he felt. 

To be fair...just from the way that Lars looked at Sadie it was incredibly clear to the rest of the world he had some kind of interest in her outside of being friends and work colleagues. 

“Sure. Okay.” Steven scoffed. 

"I don't...not like- that! Besides, it's none of your business." 

Steven desperately wanted to respond with a snide remark but kept it to himself. Lars didn't want Steven butting in and yet Lars found it completely acceptable to do the same to Steven. 

"I should probably just try again. It can't be that hard - can it?" Steven spoke his mind, not particularly interested in Lars' opinion on the subject.

"No man, you got this." Lars insisted, patting Steven on the shoulder. 

Steven took a deep breath, he couldn't let his nerves consume him. He had been taught before that people liked it when you were confident. He needed to be confident in asking Connie. A sure way of getting her attention and making a new friend. 

Steven stood up with confidence in his movement, puffing his chest out as he regulated his breathing. Lars watched as Steven walked back over to the counter with pride in his step. 

"Thought about what you want to order?" Connie asked as she turned towards the cash register, finishing with her previous task. 

Steven took a sharp breath inwards and clenched his fists in anticipation. 

"Would you like to come to Beach-a-palooza with me this Saturday?" Steven spoke incredibly fast, it was near to inaudible. 

Connie stood in shock, that wasn't exactly what she had expected in the slightest. It certainly wasn't the well-thought list of syrups that she had anticipated. 

Was Steven asking her out? 

On a...date? 

It couldn't have been. There was no way! That would have been ridiculous.

Connie froze, unable to think about what she could have possibly said to defuse the situation in a way that didn't upset Steven. 

She stared across the counter at him, seeing his glowing eyes looking back at her, awaiting an answer. 

Steven removed the snapback from the top of his head, revealing the messy curls that he had been hiding this whole time. He gripped onto the hat and anxiously traced his thumbs around the stitching on the inside. 

"I just thought maybe we could...hang out? You seem really cool and I'd love to get to know you." Steven glanced down at the floor as he spoke, quickly looking back up at Connie to see if her shocked expression had changed at all. 

Connie's expression slowly switched from her mouth being slightly ajar from shock to the corner of her lips curling upwards. Steven wanted to hang out with her? There must have been a mistake. However, despite the feeling of it being some kind of sick joke - the way that the boy looked back at her over the counter was a face of sheer bravery. He was nervous and she could tell. 

"I'd love to get to know you too." Connie smiled back, suddenly blushing at her own comment. 

Steven stared back as a mirror image of her previous shocked expression. Had she just accepted his proposal? 

"So, you'll come to Beach-a-palooza with me?" 

"Yeah...it sounds like fun!" Connie found herself anxious in her own right. She had never had anyone ask her to hang out like that before. 

What was the harm in trying to make a new friend? There was nothing stopping her from being whoever she wanted to be. At least in Beach City, she wasn't plagued with her so-called friends from class. That was just a blessing that came with living just outside of town. 

Was Steven the friend that she always needed? The friend that she deserved? It was down to time to tell whether or not that was a sensible thought. Steven hadn't given much off about his personality in the short span of time they have known each other, it mostly consisted of sugary drinks and puns about coffee. That wasn't a bad thing though, at least they would have lots to talk about if they hung out together when Connie wasn't on a shift. 

"Fun? Yeah, Beach-a-palooza is always fun. I've been every year since I was a kid. Have you?" Steven attempted to strike some casual conversation with Connie. 

"No, I've never been. My parents have never been interested in that kind of thing and even when I was, I didn't have anyone to go with…" Connie admitted shyly. Of course, she had wanted to go to the event in the past, but it wasn't as if any of her friends had ever invited her there if they did choose to attend. 

Connie usually spent the popular weekend in town sitting back at home either studying or watching a cheesy film her mother would probably have disapproved of. It was probably something she torrented off an illegal website. Connie felt some kind of rush whenever she managed to watch a film that was still in the movie theatre, a part of her felt bad, but the other part of her was all for overthrowing the corporate world of cinema. 

"You've never been?" Steven gasped. 

"No…" 

"Oh, it's so much fun! There's so much music and it's really loud - but in a good way." Steven explained, now more excited than ever with the idea that Connie had never been to the festival before. He had to make sure that this was a good experience for her. 

"I can't wait." Connie smiled as Steven grinned back, still spinning the snapback in his hands. 

They both shared an awkward moment of silence, exchanging looks at one another. Steven wasn't quite sure what to say next, he knew he would have to let Connie get back to work at some point. 

"Can I order?" Steven pointed to the cash register. 

"Of course, what would you like?" 

"How about...why don't you surprise me? Anything. What's your favourite drink?" Steven suggested, shooting a technique to see if he could try to get to know her a bit better. 

"I don't really drink much." 

"There's got to be something you like!" 

"Maybe I can think of something…" Connie smirked as she tapped on the cash register. 

Steven took that as his cue to pay, tapping his card on the machine as he had done what seemed like a million times before. Connie stepped off to the side and began to prepare the drink that she had loved since starting at the store. She had made it for herself before the start of her break a couple of times and every time she did make it, she got considerably better. 

Steven leant against the counter and watched as Connie prepared the drink. He couldn't help but notice the small smile that continued to creep up her lips, she knew that the boy was watching her with stars in his eyes. 

Nobody had ever looked at her the way that Steven was looking at her at that moment. With such love and care. 

Lars had retreated back to behind the counter and joined Sadie, they found themselves watching the interaction from afar. 

"I think he's got it." Sadie smiled up at Lars as he took his position beside her. 

"Really? Good for him." Lars snorted as they both watched Connie put together a drink for Steven. 

Connie put the utmost care in her work, everything she did was with precision. She was excited to give Steven the drink and see what he thought about it. She truly did hope that he liked it, it wasn't exactly the sugary mess that he usually drank. 

"One iced chai tea latte for Steven." Connie grinned as she proudly placed the drink on the counter in front of him and followed by posting a straw through the hole in the top of the cup. 

Steven picked it up and took a sip, immediately hit with the sweet taste. Sweet enough to be enjoyable and not so much sickening. It was... incredible. 

"Woah. That's really good. Thank you!" Steven was incredibly impressed with the drink. It was fantastic, unlike most of the other concoctions he made the baristas provide him with. 

"So, I'll see you on Saturday then?" Connie asked, there was no stopping her smile as she watched the teenager sip the drink she had made especially for him. It felt nice knowing that he enjoyed the drink, despite his usual orders. 

"Yeah! Saturday!" Steven confidently shot a finger gun towards Connie as she responded with the same action. They both laughed at one another before Steven turned and went to exit the store. 

"Wait! Don't you want my number so we can find each other there?" Connie shouted as Steven practically shot back towards the counter. 

Of course, he wanted her number! He was an idiot for assuming they would just find each other at the event, he didn't have a very well thought out plan. He hadn't even thought about them meeting, just the idea that they would have both been there - together. 

Connie gestured for Steven to hand back his cup as she grabbed a marker pen and began scribbling her number on the side. Steven watched her carefully write each number. 

"Text me what time you want to meet up." Connie passed the plastic cup back to him. 

Steven held the cup in his hand, looking down at the curly lines that formed numbers. Her handwriting was elegant and everything connected perfectly. He traced his finger over her name that she had also written on there, just in case Steven collected anyone else's number on his cup. 

"I will. I'll see you then." Steven smiled, unable to smile any less than a toothy grin. He hadn't been quite so excited in such a long time - the feeling had become foreign to him. 

"See you then." Connie repeated. Once again feeling something for the boy, a complicated feeling she couldn't quite express yet. He was so...different. 

There was a sweet nature about him, something different from everyone else that Connie had encountered in the store. Connie wasn't quite sure if Steven was after a friendship or relationship, but she wasn't ready to jump to conclusions. 

All she had to do was go to the festival and make a friend. There was nothing more to it. If she didn't like him and he started having other ideas all she had to do was let him down gently. 

It was easy. 

Connie didn't quite have any experience when it came to boys, but she knew that it was something she eventually wanted to branch out and explore. However, Connie didn't quite think anything would have bloomed until after college. She had too much on her mind to think about boys. 

Maybe just this time she could make an...exception. 

Steven, on the other hand, was over the moon. He didn't look up the whole walk home, too busy tracing his fingers over the number on the side of the cup. He had read it so many times that he was pretty certain he could have recited it with ease. 

Steven walked home with a jump in his step. 

He'd never quite felt so happy. 

About anything...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> S N A P B A C K S T E V E N . 
> 
> It's my new thing. We love him. He would look incredibly cool in a snapback, don't judge my fashion choices.


	5. Caramel Macchiato

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven finally has the guts to text the barista from the coffee shop. Her name is Connie and he...kind of likes her.

Steven had tried his hardest not to go inside of the coffee shop the whole week. He did grab a drink on one of the days that Connie was off as a sure way of not bumping into her before the first time they hung out. Lars had told him this was a good technique and even Sadie agreed. He didn't want to seem...desperate. 

Connie, on the other hand, had spent the whole week worrying about what Saturday could entail. It wasn’t the fact that Connie didn’t want to go out with Steven, it was more or less the fact that she had never done anything quite like it before. 

Why was she worried? It wasn’t a date! She needed to get that out of her head. 

Steven just wanted to get to know her better and Connie certainly didn’t want to assume anything out of the ordinary. She had no idea who Steven was and wasn’t ready to assume anything until she knew him better. 

Steven had rinsed out the cup that Connie had written on and placed it on his bedside table, despite already inputting the number on his phone. It wasn’t as if he was worried about losing the number, it was more about keeping the memory close. It was the first time someone had given him their number, at least...a girl. 

A girl that Steven was...interested in. 

Well, he didn’t quite know how to feel - all he knew was he hadn’t felt anything quite like it before. It was as if he couldn’t get the barista off his mind, no matter how hard he tried to distract himself. He just couldn’t wait to get to know her and the days leading up to Saturday were beginning to drag. 

He had typed out texts to her the whole week, unsure of how to speak to her about what they were going to do on Saturday. All they were going to do was hang out whilst music played -there wasn't much else to it. All he needed to do was to text her and ask when and where they were going to meet. It was that simple and yet Steven thought it was an impossible task. 

It was hard seeing the text written out on the screen and yet having no confidence to press the send button. It was all on Steven to make the first move, it wasn’t as if Connie had his number. 

Finally, as if it was the last opportunity to hand in the work before the deadline it was around six o’clock Friday night and Connie was beginning to get worried about meeting with Steven. He hadn’t bothered to text her - it was as if he had forgotten. She had convinced herself otherwise, Steven was the one who asked her, he couldn’t have forgotten. Surely not? 

Connie was sitting at her desk with her head in a textbook, the window of her bedroom open beside her as a cool summer evening breeze swept through. Her phone sat on the desk beside her, suddenly illuminating as a notification buzzed through. 

Connie reluctantly put the book down, currently learning about societal norms. She grabbed her phone, her heart dropped as soon as she saw the message from the unknown number. 

‘Hey, it’s Steven from the coffee shop! Hope u r having a good week. R u still up for hanging on Saturday?’ 

Connie stared down at the message that she had been waiting for all week. Suddenly, rather than giving her the much-needed relief from finally getting the text her stomach filled with butterflies. She couldn’t quite believe she had agreed to something so rash. It certainly wasn’t like her to try and go out of her way to make a new friend. 

Steven stood on the balcony of the beach house on the side of the large hill where he lived. It had taken a lot out of him to send the message and now all he had to do was try and wait for the result. He stared out at the ocean and sighed heavily. Who was he kidding? Someone like Connie would never want to befriend him. 

Steven’s heart fluttered as he glanced down at his screen again, noticing that three small dots had appeared on the messaging app. 

She was replying! 

Suddenly, the three dots stopped moving, completely disappearing from the screen. Steven’s face dropped dramatically, unable to take his eyes off the corner of the phone. Little did Steven know, Connie was experiencing immense anxiety trying to think of how to respond, a little like he had done when trying to send the first text. 

Steven sounded so confident in his message, it was crazy how much you could fool someone through text. There was little to no emotions showed when it came to reading the words typed on a screen. 

‘Hi! I am having a good week, thank you. How are you? I’d love to, do you know what time you want to meet?’ Connie typed anxiously. 

Steven’s eyes widened as the message appeared on the screen. She had replied and it took no less than a couple of minutes! He was incredibly grateful for her fast reply, knowing it would allow him to relax ever so slightly rather than pacing around the house for hours until she responded. 

Steven wanted to respond with something along the lines of ‘yes, my week has been amazing, I can’t stop thinking about you’ - but that was creepy. That was really creepy and Steven knew it. He couldn’t be...weird. 

‘I am good. How about 6 pm - outside the coffee shop?’ 

‘Sounds good. I’ll see you then.’

‘C u then!’ 

Steven didn’t quite know how to continue the conversation, he didn’t want to stop talking to Connie. He held his phone close to his chest and sighed, He couldn’t quite believe he was going on a date with the girl from the coffee shop. 

It wasn’t a date! 

Steven internally scowled at himself for thinking such a thing.

Connie attempted to concentrate on the sociology book, but instead continuously peeking over the top to stare at her phone, making sure that she wouldn’t miss another notification. Steven didn’t have another reason to text back, they had already established everything that they needed to know before heading out on Saturday. 

If Connie wanted Steven to text back, she would have to make the move herself. He had thrown the ball in her court with the last message - it was down to her to think of something to say in response. It wasn’t as if she was going to be able to focus on studying when Steven was in the equation. 

Connie dropped her book in frustration, switching it out for her phone instead. She opened up the texting app and allowed her thumbs to hover over the keyboard. What was she supposed to say as a way to spark a conversation? 

‘What are you up to?’ Connie anxiously typed out before pressing send. What a terrible way of starting a conversation. He was probably busy, hanging out with his abundance of friends that he had when he wasn't in the coffee shop. Maybe he had a fancy job that he had just come home from? Maybe he was also studying? 

She hoped that she wasn't disturbing his evening. That was the last thing that she wanted to do. 

Steven removed the phone from his chest as it buzzed, he couldn’t quite believe he had another notification. One from Connie - again! Steven grinned, Connie wanted to have a conversation with him and he was more than prepared with things that he wanted to speak about. He had been thinking about things he could have asked to get to know her better and most of them were regarding what she liked and disliked within the world. There was so much to learn. 

‘Not much. Hbu?’ 

Steven groaned that wasn’t a good way to kickstart a conversation. He should have lied about an exciting activity he was participating in. Lying wouldn’t have been a good thing though - Steven wasn’t a liar and even if he had tried to be, he was pretty bad at it. 

‘Just studying.’ 

‘What are you studying?’ 

‘Sociology. I’m trying to keep up throughout the summer.’ 

‘What’s that?’

‘What?’

‘Sociology’

‘It’s the study of society. A study into why people act the way they do. I find it really interesting, but I can see why some people would find it boring.’ 

‘It sounds like fun!’ 

‘It can be, yeah! Are you still in school?’

‘Not really. I was homeschooled by my aunts, but we kind of finished that a few years ago lol.’ 

‘You’ve never been to school?’ 

‘Nope’ 

The idea perplexed Connie, but if someone hadn’t been to school that wasn’t an issue as long as their homeschooling was proficient. Steven seemed like a smart guy, it didn’t seem like homeschooling had affected his ability to learn. Connie couldn’t quite imagine the social reclusion of being homeschooled, if Connie struggled with friends whilst she was in a social environment, she would have dreaded the idea of never being able to interact in those places at all. 

Connie thought that perhaps texting Steven would have been a good way to get to know him the day before they met up. As much as she couldn’t wait to spend some time with him outside of the coffee shop, she was still somewhat wary of the stranger. She wanted to get to know him, but how much of that she could have done in an evening was questionable. 

Steven was just happy for Connie to want to speak to him. It was pretty difficult to speak to one another in the coffee shop, even if he wanted it. It always felt like there was a customer listening into their conversations or the barista would have to go and do their job. They hadn’t quite experienced this with one another yet, but Steven certainly knew the feeling from all the times that he had spent with Sadie and Lars. 

Steven and Connie didn’t quite realise what the time was as their text conversation finally came to a close at around 1 am. They had been speaking for hours about just about anything. From their favourite foods to what they were currently binge-watching on television. 

Steven found himself lying on his back in bed not long after standing outside for a while exchanging texts with Connie. Steven even managed to ignore all his aunts sat on the couch as he walked past, his head buried in his phone and a smile protruding from his lips. They didn’t quite question his smiles - it was probably a cat video. 

No cats - just Connie. Connie and her ability to leave him wanting to speak to the girl for hours. When Connie said that she needed to go he was sorely disappointed - they still had so much to talk about! 

As much as Connie didn’t want to go, she knew that she would have to sleep. That was if she even could sleep, nervous of what tomorrow could bring. Speaking to Steven throughout the evening was nice, to say the least. She had never had quite the long flow of a text exchange with anyone else ever before. If her mother knew that she had been texting a boy all evening and had completely ignored her studies she would have been grounded, but luckily her parents never came to check on her progress all evening. 

Steven certainly didn’t lose interest, wanting to know as much as possible about her in such a short span of time. He could have stayed up speaking to her all night, but that would have been selfish knowing that she wanted to go to bed. 

‘It’s been really nice speaking to you.’ Connie attempted to summarise the conversation, the only way that she knew how to stop texting. She knew that the first thing she would have done in the morning was to see if he had texted her at all throughout the night. It would have been unlikely, but she was still willing to check. 

‘You too. I can’t wait for tomorrow!’

‘Me either.’ 

‘I’ll see you at 6.’

‘C u then!’ 

Steven sighed heavily as he allowed his phone to slip onto his chest as he stared up at the ceiling. A small smile sitting upon his face. The evening spent speaking to Connie had truly been something else. 

It was different. 

A good kind of different that Steven was happy to contend with. One that he had slowly been finding himself slipping into as of late. 

He was happy.

Content with the choices he had made the past couple of week. Meeting Connie was a step in the right direction. He finally felt motivated to get out of bed in the morning. He finally felt like he could breathe in such a suffocating world. 

Steven was happy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pretty short chapter, but the next chapter will be pretty long to make up for it. Not used to writing such short chapters. 
> 
> Please feel free to add suggestions or comments below or in my ask box on Tumblr @ConnverseTheUniverse
> 
> It's about to get FLUFFY. 
> 
> FLUFFIER. 
> 
> Chapter title suggested by Stasious!


	6. Flat White

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven and Connie go to Beach-a-palooza together. 
> 
> Steven teaches Connie to dance. 
> 
> Lars says the words 'sweet poonani' in a sentence. 
> 
> What's not to love?

It was Saturday. 

The day in which Beach-a-palooza was taking place. The day in which Steven and Connie would hang out together for the first time. 

They had both been looking forward to the event all week and their conversation the night before just enhanced their excitement. 

Connie had spent the whole day studying, or at least what she could do without being distracted by thoughts of what he evening could entail. It had been such a long time since she had hung out with anyone. It would have been interesting to see how it turned out to say the least. 

She hoped for the best. 

On the other hand, Steven had spent the day practically bouncing off the walls in his own home leaving his aunts to question his unforeseen happiness. 

Steven hadn't given many hints as to what he was doing with his evening, but the overwhelming smell of after-shave protruding from the bathroom gave them some kind of idea as to why he could have been acting that way. 

As much as each of them wanted to question him, they decided to leave him to his own business. Steven was old enough to look after himself and as much as they wanted to intervene, they had learnt their lessons in the past. Steven needed some space sometimes and that was okay. They only ever wanted the best for him. 

Connie decided to ditch the books and attempt to decide on what kind of outfit she would wear to the festival. Why did dressing up in nice clothes have to be such a tedious task? It was unfair. 

Connie spent a long time pondering on what kind of outfit to go for, eventually deciding on a short-sleeved yellow shirt and jean shorts. It was a pretty warm day, so she could only assume the evening would have followed suit. 

Connie took the bus into town, informing her parents that she was going to a community event. She agreed to check in with them every hour and to be back before midnight. They seemed like pretty reasonable rules and Connie was okay with following them. After all, it wasn't as if she went out often so when she did her parents probably found it hard to relax. 

Connie walked along the boardwalk, unable to look away from the stage that was still in the process of being set up on the beach. She hadn't been to the event before, only seeing it in pictures she couldn't quite believe how large the stage was for a communal event. 

Connie hadn't been given a shift at work that Saturday, having the day off was nice. It also meant that she had enough time to get ready before meeting Steven. Lars or Sadie would have been locking up the shop around that time, so it was likely they could bump into them. Especially when she agreed with Steven to meet right outside. 

It was the one place that they both knew that the other person was aware of. 

Connie didn’t want to be late for meeting with Steven, so took the earlier bus so that she could have gotten there slightly earlier. She wasn’t quite sure where Steven lived and how long it took him to get to the coffee shop, he always seemed to be on foot so only assumed that he lived in walking distance of the shop. 

She stood outside of the coffee shop and peered inside, it would have only been a few minutes before the shop would close up for the night. Connie couldn’t quite see anyone, so took her chances on being that annoying customer that came in only moments before closure. 

Sadie stood behind the counter, looking over as Connie entered the shop. She really had become that annoying customer. 

“Connie! I was just closing up. Do you want a drink before I turn everything off?” Sadie asked politely as Connie walked into the coffee shop, the smell of coffee hitting her instantly. It was pretty strange walking into the shop through the entrance considering she had used the back door since starting to work there. 

It felt as if she was a customer. 

“That’s alright, thank you. I’m heading to Beach-a-palooza soon, are you coming?” Connie asked as she walked over to the counter, the shop was empty. 

It was surprising to Connie that they didn’t have any customers considering the event that was going on just outside. It may have had something to do with all of the out-of-town food trucks that were situated along the beach. It wasn’t as if any of them came into town very often, so it was likely that people welcomed the change for once. 

“Yeah, I’ll probably head home after closing to get ready and then come back. Lars stuck me on the closing shift.” Sadie grumbled the last sentence, she always seemed to be cleaning up for him. “Hey, aren’t you going with Steven?” Sadie continued. 

“I’m just waiting for him. He said he would be here at six.” Connie explained, she was half expecting Steven to walk through the door any moment and get a last-minute order in somewhere. 

“He stopped by not too long ago.” 

“He did?” 

“Yeah, he ordered one of the iced chai tea lattes again.” Sadie snorted.

“Really?” Connie immediately smiled, Steven really did like the drink that she had made him. 

“I don’t know what you said to him, but I’ve never seen him so happy. He’s always been a positive guy, but nothing quite like the past few days. You must have made quite the impression on him.” Sadie shrugged before leaning down and turning off one of the machines to help prepare for closing. 

Connie couldn’t quite believe anything that Sadie was saying, she had to be messing with her. There was no way that after only briefly meeting each other a few times that she could have made any kind of impression on the teenager. They had such a lovely chat with one another last night over text but was that really enough to change the way that he felt about everything? Was that really enough to make any kind of impression on him? 

Connie didn’t really want to make an...impression. That felt bizarre. It felt strange to even consider. 

The idea made her stomach swirl, a pit of anxiety building within her. What if Steven...liked her? Nobody had ever liked her before, at least not like that! 

There was no way that it was possible - they were just friends. 

Connie couldn’t quite formulate the words that she wanted to say to Sadie, glancing back at the exit. There stood by the door was the boy who had just been the core subject of their conversation. He was pacing slightly, staring at his phone. 

The reality was, he wasn’t looking at anything in particular. It was just a way of making himself look a little less awkward as he scrolled back and forth up the messages that Connie had sent him the night before. It seemed he had already spent the whole day doing the same thing. He needed to stop thinking about...her. 

No matter how hard he tried, she just wouldn’t leave his mind. 

“Looks like he’s here already.” Sadie gestured towards Steven stood outside the front, still pacing around with his phone in his hand. 

Connie stared through the window, he nearly looked as nervous as he had done the other day inside of the coffee shop when asking her the question. Connie smiled at the teenager through the glass - he was pretty adorable. 

“I should probably get going.” 

“You don’t want to keep him waiting.” Sadie winked as Connie turned back to wave at her. 

“See you later!” 

Connie walked out of the coffee shop, a little bit anxious to spend the rest of her night with the boy who she had spent the previous day texting exchanges about their favourite kind of pizza and television shows. 

Steven jumped slightly at the sound of the door opening behind him, he was not expecting Connie to come out of the coffee shop. He had been far too busy worrying about where else she may have come from - it wasn’t even quite six yet. It seemed that both of them enjoyed getting there early, or at least on time. 

That was an acute difference between Steven and Connie’s other friends. He somehow managed to get there without being insanely late, which meant that Connie wouldn’t have to wait around for a crazy amount of time waiting for him. Something she always feared when out with her other friends. 

Steven was shocked to see Connie, his eyes widened noticing she was no longer wearing the cap and apron that she wore to work. Instead, he found himself somewhat mesmerised by her new outfit of the yellow shirt and jean shorts. Her hair was no longer tied back, now flowing down to her shoulders. Despite being a basic outfit, it showed so much personality to Connie that Steven hadn’t quite seen inside of the coffee shop. 

She was beautiful...

“You’re early...” Steven exclaimed, just as shocked as Connie was to see each other earlier than anticipated. 

“So are you!” Connie countered with a chuckled. 

Steven stared down at his phone, checking the time. Yes, of course, he was early. That wasn’t such a bad thing, he just hadn’t expected Connie to already be there. He was going to mentally prepare himself for the next ten minutes and now he didn’t quite have a chance. 

“It’s good to see you. Thanks for coming.” Steven spoke in a soft tone, unable to quite get his words out as confidently as he had expressed them inside of his mind. It was unfair. 

“Thanks for inviting me.” Connie shrugged, unsure what else to say. Steven gently placed his phone back into his pocket. 

Connie noticed that Steven didn’t go out of his way to dress in anything different for the event, still representing the black snapback with the yellow star, black hoodie and pink varsity jacket. She glanced down and noticed that he was now wearing a pair of red flip flops - a pretty practical choice considering they would have been standing on a beach all night. 

“It’s nice to have someone to go with. Who are you excited to see?” Steven gestured for both of them to start walking down the boardwalk, Connie slowly grazing over his first comment. 

Who was Connie excited to see? She hadn’t even looked into the festival and had no idea what artists were playing music. 

“I’ll be honest, I haven’t looked at the lineup…” Connie awkwardly admitted as she held onto her own arm. 

“That’s okay, it just means you’ll have an evening full of surprises. That sounds like fun.” 

“What kind of music are you interested in?” Connie attempted to start a conversation as they walked together down the boardwalk. 

“I like all kinds of music!”

“People only say that when they’re too lazy to name the genres they enjoy the most. So, what are your favourite genres of music?” Connie questioned, not allowing Steven to skip his answer. 

Steven pondered on the question for a moment. He really did enjoy all kinds of music, but she was right, it was an excuse to not think about it. 

“Um, I really like alternative rock. Mostly the acoustic side, but I blame my dad for that. He’s really into music. But as lazy as it sounds, I’d probably listen to anything and enjoy it.” Steven spoke casually, not wanting to mention his father too much. It was nice to avoid the idea that he was the son of a successful musician, he wanted Connie to like him for who he was and not for who his dad made him out to be. 

“That’s pretty cool.”

“How about you? What genres do you like?” 

“Mostly indie pop. Anything that I can play in the background whilst I study without it causing too much of a distraction.” Connie admitted, breaking down her music habits. 

Connie mostly listened to music when she was studying as a way to help her zone out into the books that she was reading. As long as the lyrics weren’t that emotionally captivating she found it easy to keep her mind on studying. 

“You’ll like all of these bands, they’re all really unique and I’ve seen a few of them perform before.” Steven commented, he had pretty much been to every single Beach-a-palooza since he was a kid. There had never been a festival where he didn’t enjoy every single one of the acts, they all made him want to dance to the same capacity. 

Steven and Connie continued to walk together down the boardwalk and onto the beach. They were stood close enough for people to know they were together, but not close enough for anyone to have assumed anything about them. 

Having lived in Beach City his whole life, the entire crowd was full of familiar faces to Steven. Connie was starting to recognise a few people as some of the regulars that had come into the coffee shop over the few weeks that she had been working there. Despite not spending as much time in Beach City as a kid, she was still incredibly familiar with the place. 

Steven hoped that the evening with Connie would go well, he was loving the idea of being her friend more than anything. The more time that he spent with her, the more he wanted to be with her and the more interesting she became. He wanted her to be much more than just the barista who made fantastic coffees and teas. 

They both stood side by side near the front of the stage, it was pretty crowded on the beach and everyone was getting prepared to watch the first act. Most of the bands that performed on the stage were local to the area and had played at the festival before. It was mostly about celebrating local talent and was a good opportunity for everyone to share their music. Even Steven had performed on stage with his dad when he was a kid. 

Connie was excited to see what the bands were like, she had never been to a concert before - let alone a concert that was on the beach. The whole setup was huge, along with the large speakers that littered the stage. 

“Are you ready?” Steven questioned, knowing that they would both be standing together listening to the music for around four hours straight. The experience would have been uncomfortably warm, but incredibly fun. 

“As ready as I’ll ever be.” Connie smiled, suddenly feeling so comfortable in Steven’s presence as if all of her previous anxiety had been washed away. 

They both stood together as the first act came on stage, Connie wasn’t quite sure what to do with her hands other than clap. Steven found himself cheering, having been to plenty of concerts in the past he had gotten used to the etiquette that was shown. He placed both of his index fingers into the sides of his mouth and showed off a talent of his by blowing an incredibly sharp whistle that vibrated Connie’s eardrums more than she would have liked - as if the music being played wasn’t loud enough. 

It was strange to say how happy she felt just glancing over to Steven and seeing him smile up at the band, completely entranced with the music that they were playing. He had no shame in bending his knee repeatedly to the beat and even playing imaginary drums whilst Connie watched. He showed no fear. 

Connie was jealous of his ability to do whatever he wanted in the crowd. It was as if nobody knew him except from the music. There wasn’t a single care in the world. 

Steven started to notice that Connie wasn’t quite as enthused as he was about the music. It didn’t look as if she wasn’t enjoying herself, but it also didn’t look as if she was having the time of her life. Steven wanted to make sure it was at least on the latter end of the spectrum. He wanted to make sure that she had a good time. 

“Do you want to dance?” Steven confidently sounded over the music. Of course, he was confident with music - it was something that he had been brought up with. 

This wasn’t the coffee shop. This wasn’t Connie’s comfort zone - but it was his. He felt comfortable hidden away within the crowd and with the music playing he felt as if he could have done just about anything. 

“What?” Connie shouted back, unable to hear him over the music and the cheering crowd. 

Connie leant closer to Steven before he shouted into her ear, clearing his throat slightly before doing so. 

“Do you want to dance with me?” 

Connie immediately pulled away after hearing the words, Steven’s face suddenly dropping at the action. What had he done? Why did he have to ruin everything? Was that too far? 

Connie blushed, what was Steven thinking? The way in which she pulled away must have shocked Steven. It wasn’t because she didn’t want to dance and it wasn’t because the question was too much - it was because she didn’t know how to dance. 

She had never danced in public before. 

She had never danced with anyone before. 

The only time in which she had ever moved her feet and arms in such a way to even be considered dancing was when she was at home alone in her bedroom to songs that she couldn’t help but move her body to. 

In public? With Steven? That was a different story. 

Steven stared at her, beating himself up on the inside for suggesting something so terrible. It was just the way in which she had previously smiled at him was a clear indicator for him that she was enjoying her time with him. Was he wrong? 

“Did I...say something wrong? You don’t have to, I-” Steven shouted over the music, suddenly flustered with anxiety as he leant closer to her once again so that she could hear him. 

“No! It’s not you...I’ve just never danced before. Well, at least not in public.” Connie yelled into Steven’s ear as he turned to listen to her. 

Steven turned back to face Connie, a small smile creeping up his face. She didn’t hate him...she was just nervous. That was okay! Steven could handle that, after all, he got nervous a lot too. 

“That’s okay, concerts are made for people who don’t know how to dance.” Steven shouted back, no longer leaning to Connie’s ear. Despite not quite being able to hear him, she read his lips perfectly. 

His words made her smile, looking back at his kind expression made her once again feel comfortable within the crowd. She noticed his hand suddenly glide upwards as if he was reaching out for her to grab ahold of his hand. 

Steven shrugged before holding his hand out for Connie, the song suddenly coming to a close as the crowd cheered at the drums began to sound loudly, signally the start of the next song. Connie glanced down at the hand that was reaching out to be held, a desperate desire for attention. 

Connie was nervous, unsure about what step to take next as the music began to start. All she needed to do was hold onto the boy's hand, but she was so nervous! She couldn’t help but feel as if everyone was going to judge her, despite nobody in the crowd being interested in her in the slightest. There was one person in the crowd interested in her and his name was Steven Universe. 

Steven smiled before putting his other arm in front of his eyes to block his vision. 

“I won’t watch.” Steven shouted, the intro of the song quiet enough for Connie to hear his voice. 

He was so sweet. Connie couldn’t quite resist the charm that the teenage boy showed, the caring nature that he had was too much for her to handle. If Connie was going to dance anywhere it would have been in that crowd. Even if she was terrible, it wasn’t as if Steven was going to judge her. He didn’t seem like the judgemental type. 

Connie reluctantly reached out for his hand, upon their fingers touching Connie felt her whole body relax. Their hands intertwined as they held onto one another. Steven’s hands were warm and incredibly soft, Connie’s hand slipping perfectly into position as they held on just tight enough to reassure themselves. Steven lightly squeezed Connie’s hand, a way of letting her know that she could relax in his presence. 

Steven pulled Connie closer before stepping backwards, repeating the action a few times with his eyes covered. He couldn’t see Connie’s reaction - but he sure did want to. 

Was this all that dancing was? Connie was finding it incredibly easy and relaxing to move back and forth to the beat of the music. It didn’t feel like anyone was watching them and even if they were she was having fun! Why would it matter what anyone else thought of them?

Steven decided to test the waters, keeping his eyes closed but using his other hand to reach out for Connie to grab. He would have loved to have held both of her hands, guiding her through the quick dance that he had suddenly made up on the spot. It was nothing more than dancing back and forth, but it felt good. 

Connie noticed Steven’s second hand reach out and this time she wasn’t quite so reluctant to grab ahold of it. Just as her other hand had practically slid into his, this one did the exact same. It just felt...right. 

Connie smiled at Steven, his eyes still tightly screwed together as a way of making Connie feel better about dancing. He didn’t have to do that. He could have opened his eyes and made fun of her for dancing, the way in which her mind had depicted the scene. Instead, he was respectful and didn’t want to make Connie uncomfortable. 

They continued to dance together as the guitar solo played nearer the end of the song, the whole crowd jumping around and having the time of their life at the festival. It was something that only came around once a year, but the whole town seemed to use their time wisely to make sure it was the best event it possibly could be. Everyone looked forward to it. 

Connie had never felt quite so comfortable being in a crowd of people, let alone dancing with someone that she barely knew. Yet with their synced movements and locked hands, Connie felt as if she had known the teenager her whole life. He certainly didn’t feel like a stranger. 

They both shared chuckles with each other, Steven still keeping his eyes glued together. Their laughter was inaudible throughout the crowd and despite the loud music it seemed as if they could hear each other chuckling along to their horrible dancing. 

The song slowly came to an end, it was the end of the band’s set and the crowd began to cheer around them as the band lifted their instruments in succession and thanked everyone for coming to see them. 

Steven and Connie stopped dancing, continuing to hold onto each other’s hands as they chuckled lightly. Steven slowly opened his eyes, looking up slightly at Connie as she stood with one side of her face illuminated by the stage lights. Her eyes glistened under the light as her cheeks flushed a shade of red. 

Despite being somewhat embarrassed, they didn’t let go of their perfectly intertwined fingers. 

“You said you wouldn’t look…” Connie smiled, glancing off to the side. The way in which Steven was staring at her made her shy. It was a longing stare filled with care and admiration. 

“I said I wouldn’t watch whilst you danced. You didn’t say anything about not looking after we stopped dancing.” Steven corrected, unable to keep his eyes off the girl who had suddenly won over his heart. 

He liked her. He liked her a lot. 

Was it even possible to feel that for someone they only just met? 

“Oh...I guess I didn’t.” Connie was flustered, but still didn’t quite notice that they were still holding hands. Suddenly, it felt so natural to be within his grip. 

As the music came to a close and the crowd started to move around them Steven noticed that their hands were still gripped together. As much as he didn’t want to let go, he slowly released his grip. Connie rapidly withdrew her hands from the situation, placing them to her sides as she continued to blush. 

She had just held Steven’s hands! They had just...danced together! 

Was he trying to flirt with her? If he was...he was certainly winning her over. She couldn’t help but look back at him with shock, their eyes lingering on one another for a lot longer than they had both expected. 

“Do you want me to get you a drink?” Steven questioned, unable to think of much else to do between the sets. 

“Usually I’m the one asking that question.” Connie chuckled, Steven suddenly realised what she was referring to. Of course, it was funny for Steven to be offering her a drink when the roles were always reversed. 

“Well, it certainly won’t be as good as that tea you make - but the soda from that truck over there is pretty good.” Steven shrugged as he pointed off in the distance to one of the food trucks that were selling cans of soda. 

“That would be great!”

“I’ll be right back.” Steven grinned before throwing Connie two finger guns making her laugh. 

He began to walk through the crowd, making his way over to the food truck that was selling the drinks. His mind was swimming with all kinds of thoughts and there wasn’t a single one that was bad. He was over the moon! 

The way that she looked at him - she had to like him too! Nobody had ever looked at him quite like that and it was clear she was shy about it. He was shy about it too - he knew exactly how she felt. 

He was powering through the emotions as a way to seem stronger about the whole scenario. Steven didn’t usually have much confidence, but the way in which she looked at him filled him with a newfound feeling that he couldn’t quite control. 

“Hey, Steven! Are you getting that sweet poonani yet?” A voice suddenly shouted as they pushed Steven on the shoulder. He furrowed his eyebrows as he glanced over at the irritating figure, standing back up straight after being knocked. 

“Panini?” 

“Poona-. Y’know what? Forget it.” Lars grumbled. There was no hope in getting through to Steven Universe. 

“Okay…” Steven had other things to worry about and none of which included Lars. He stood in line for the food truck, he wanted to get back to Connie as soon as possible.

“Where’s Connie? Didn’t you guys come together?” Lars questioned, a more mature way to ask what he wanted to ask. 

“Yeah, she’s back that way. I was just grabbing us some drinks.” Steven pointed back toward the crowd. 

“Alcohol?” 

“Lars, I’m seventeen.” 

“C’mon man, don’t be so uptight all the time.” Lars shoved Steven in the shoulder once more, causing Steven to get frustrated with him. 

“I’m not being uptight!” Steven snapped. 

“Woah, calm down. I’m only trying to loosen you up a little. You look a little tense.” Lars attempted to defend his own comments. 

Steven didn’t feel proud of himself for snapping at Lars, but it was the only way that he could have gotten him to lay off. It was the same way that Lars treated Steven, so he saw it as being no different. 

Steven pinched the bridge of his nose and breathed deeply. He needed to learn to control his emotions. 

“I’m sorry. I’m having a good time. Sorry.” Steven didn’t like Lars trying to push him around, especially when he was in such a good mood. He couldn’t let anything ruin it and then Lars just had to come along and…

“It’s okay, I’m glad you’re having a good time.” Lars placed his hand on Steven’s shoulder and smiled down at him, no longer wanting to violently push him as a gesture of good will. It quite clearly didn’t thrill Steven. 

Lars was certainly...brash, but that didn’t mean he was heartless. Steven often got filled with confusion after Lars essentially bullied him only to defend and support him at the flip of a switch. He was certainly the big brother type and Steven had started to learn to accept that over the years. He didn’t have any siblings, so Lars was the closest he was going to get. 

“Thanks.” Steven gave Lars a sympathetic smile before Lars pushed Steven’s cap down onto his face. 

Steven grumbled as Lars laughed - of course, they couldn’t share a sentimental moment without Lars ruining it. 

“Just be safe out there, my dude. I’m going to go get zooted behind a dumpster with the cool kids. Catch you later.” Lars sighed as he patted Steven on the back as he readjusted the snapback on his head. 

Steven didn’t quite know what Lars was referring to, but he was happy to finally get him out of his hair so that he could finally enjoy the rest of his night with Connie. As the line got shorter and shorter he hoped that she didn’t feel too lonely on her own. He felt pretty bad about leaving her alone in the crowd, it wasn’t as if she had ever been to one of these functions before. 

He finally reached the end of the queue and paid for the two sodas that were vastly overpriced for the size of them. Was this a small local music event or robbery? It was hard to tell after paying over eight dollars for two cans. It was totally worth it. 

Steven walked back through the crowd with the two sodas, making his way back to Connie the best he could. It was hard to find her amongst the sea of people. 

Despite taking his time to push through everyone, he eventually found her, once again shining under the light of the stage. 

Yet this time there was something different. Connie was smiling - laughing even. 

Steven thought it was sweet, he stopped in his tracks and watched from afar. He was slowly coming to the conclusion that he loved the baristas smile, her real smile, not the fake smile she gave to customers on a day to day basis. The smile that she gave him after they had stopped dancing. 

The smile that she was currently giving to some guy that Steven had never seen in his life…

Steven’s expression instantly dropped into a frown.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I know this is a coffee shop AU - but they're not spending their whole life at work. Give me a break! I mention coffee at least four times this chapter LMAO. 
> 
> Kidding, I know that you don't care about whether or not this is in a coffee shop every single chapter because you guys are suckers for anything Connverse. 
> 
> I can see that stupid smile on your face whenever you read a cute sentence. You know what though? You look cute too. 
> 
> See! Look at you! You're smiling again - YOU'RE SO ADORABLE!!! :-D
> 
> I love you. <3


	7. Toffee Latte

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven says things that maybe he shouldn't have said...
> 
> He also asks another very important question.

No. There was no way that Steven could have gotten everything so wrong…

He was so stupid. 

Steven didn’t see himself as the jealous type, he had nothing to be jealous about. It wasn’t as if they were even in a relationship. It was ridiculous of him to even have been thinking that way. 

It was fine. Connie had chosen to hang out with him at the concert - nobody else. They had just shared such a special moment together dancing as if nobody was watching. Steven certainly hadn’t been watching, but he wished he had. He hoped someday that they could have danced together with his eyes open. 

Yet none of that would have happened if this guy that Steven had never seen before didn’t stop making Connie laugh the way that he did. 

He couldn’t let his emotions overwhelm him. It wasn’t like him to get angry and getting angry over something so trivial would have made Connie think that he was weird. He certainly didn’t want that to happen. 

Steven cautiously stepped over to Connie, allowing himself to be seen. Connie smiled back at him, the new guy stood in front of them both. Steven made sure to stand beside Connie, awkwardly holding the sodas with his lips pressed into a thin line. 

“Oh Steven, you’re back! This is my friend from class, Daniel. He came over to say hi!” Connie introduced her new friend. 

“It’s nice to meet you.” Daniel grinned. Steven didn’t dislike anyone, it wasn’t in his nature to do so. However, the smartly dressed boy looked so much better than he did. Everything about him from the way that he spoke down to his well-rounded face and fashion sense was better. 

Daniel went to reach for Steven’s hand before realising he was holding the two cans of soda. 

Steven didn’t stand a chance. 

“This is Steven, he’s one of the regulars at the coffee shop I told you I work at.” Connie explained her relationship with the new face that Daniel had never seen beside Connie before. 

The regular? Steven was just...the regular? 

Oh. 

“Hi.” Steven spoke bluntly, forcing a smile.

“Daniel was just telling a story about last year’s Beach-a-palooza.” Connie smiled, the confidence in her words was a lot different when there was someone other than Steven around. When she was with Steven it seemed as if she tripped on her own words. 

Did he really make her that nervous? 

“Yeah?” Steven cocked an eyebrow. He knew every story related to the event. He was there every single year without failure - nobody knew the event quite like him. Even Daniel. 

“It was just a stupid story about how one of our classmates got too drunk that he threw up in a cab home. His Mom had to pay for the damages and he was grounded for nearly a whole year!” Daniel chuckled. 

That story was stupid. Did everyone drink aside from Steven? What was the fascination? Not only that - it was also pretty illegal. He didn’t quite know how old both Connie and Daniel were, but he estimated around the same age as he was. Connie had mentioned what year she was in school and despite having to search it online, Steven found out they were around the same age. 

“Oh - that sounds pretty awful.” Steven didn’t quite know how to respond. Was it supposed to be funny? It didn’t sound very funny, especially not for the person who the story was about. 

“It was for poor Johnathon, dude wasn’t even allowed to use his phone for six months straight.” Daniel sniggered again, Connie snorting at the comment. 

From everything that Steven had found out about Connie, it didn’t really seem like Connie to have laughed at something like that. It didn’t fit with everything that she told Steven about herself. It didn’t even quite fit with how she had acted the whole evening. 

Why was she acting different around this Daniel character? 

“That must have been rough!” Connie laughed at Daniel’s comment. 

“Yeah, it was. Anyway guys, I’m going to catch up with everyone else. It was good to meet you, Steven. See you around!” Daniel didn’t stick around long, saying his goodbyes before turning on his heel and disappearing into the crowd. 

Connie turned back to Steven, focusing her sole attention back onto him. There was nobody else to distract her from spending the evening with the coffee-loving teenager. 

“Grape soda?” Connie glanced down at the cans in Steven’s hands. It wasn’t quite the soda that she had expected him to bring back.

“It was all they had.” Steven half-smiled as he held up the can and passed it over to her. 

“Oh.”

“It also cost me four dollars, so I hope you like it.” Steven laughed awkwardly. 

“Wow, that’s a lot! I can pay you back.” Connie suggested, feeling guilty about him going out of his way to get the expensive drink. 

“It’s okay - my treat.” Steven grinned before pulling open the tab on the top of the can. He took a sip of the drink before turning back to Connie to question the elephant in the room. The elephant in his room - nobody else. “Who was that guy anyway?” Steven tried to ask as casually as possible as he threw his free hand into his jacket pocket. 

“Daniel? Oh, he’s just a guy from class. He’s in my friendship group too, they all came together. As per usual though - they must have forgotten my invite.” Connie tapped the top of the soda can before pulling the tab. She looked sadly down at the drink, it wasn’t the first time that her group of so-called friends had forgotten about her. 

“Really? That’s not very nice.” Steven suddenly became irrationally angry within his mind. Why would anyone not want to invite Connie out with them? 

“Yeah...they’re not exactly the nicest of people.” Connie looked downwards. It wasn’t as if she was bullied, at least not to her face, but whenever she was in the room it seemed as if the temperature changed. People claimed to be her friends but were incredibly happy with dropping her at a moment’s notice. She had pretty much given up on anyone that she went to school with, desperately awaiting college in which she could have made new friends. Hopefully, new friends that valued her. 

“Forget about them.” 

“Huh?”

“You don’t need them. You’re far better than they are! You’re so smart and funny and they’re just...mean!” Steven kept his eyebrows low as he spoke, incredibly upset that there were people in the world that would put others down without a moment’s notice. It felt horrible to see Connie as upset as she was at that moment. 

Connie’s face began to burn up. Did Steven just call her smart and funny? That was a double combo of compliments - ones that she had never quite received before. 

“Thanks, Steven. You’re right. Besides, hanging out with you is a lot more fun!” Connie grinned. 

Did Connie just say what he thought she just said? His heart was slowly melting away, a lump forming in his throat. She was looking at him that way that made his heart skip a beat again. 

“Yeah, it is!” Steven chuckled, suddenly agreeing with Connie. It was a lot more fun! More fun than Connie’s friends could have ever made it. 

Would Connie’s so-called friends have danced with her? Would they have bought her overpriced grape soda? He didn’t think so. Steven was being a pretty good friend and he couldn’t help but praise himself for being so natural in his conversations with her. 

The final act began to play on the stage, slowly bringing the night to a close. It seemed as if Connie had enjoyed her evening out with Steven. Steven even noticed that during the final act that Connie had taken to bending her knee back and forth as a way of expressing herself through the music. She had even let out a little cheer after seeing Steven do it so many times throughout the night. 

As the crowd began to disperse to go home, Steven and Connie stood on the beach together contemplating the next move in their plan of hanging out. It was finally time to say goodbye…

“I’ll have to go or I’ll miss my next bus.” Connie spoke with sadness in her tone, it wasn’t as if she wanted to leave Steven behind, but her parents would have killed her if she was to break curfew. 

“Bus? Do you want me to drive you home? I don’t mind.” Steven suggested it was far too late for anyone to have been taking a bus. 

“You drive?” Connie questioned, holding herself to keep the cold sea breeze from making the hair on her arms stand. 

“Yeah! It’s no trouble - really.” Steven offered once more, he didn’t want to seem pushy, but the idea of being able to drive Connie home filled him with all kinds of emotions. It wasn’t very often he got to drive anyone...anywhere! 

“Are you sure? I live just outside of town.” 

“It’s cool! My house is just around the corner, I can grab my car and I’ll take you home. No sweat!” Steven grinned, he wanted to do something nice for her and not having to sit on a sweaty old bus for forty minutes would have been doing her a favour. 

Not only that, but it also meant that they would have gotten to spend more time with each other not being crammed inside of the coffee shop. Steven certainly liked that idea and well...Connie liked the idea too. 

“Okay, thank you. Is it far to walk to yours? It’s freezing!” Connie laughed, perhaps picking shorts and a shirt wasn’t the most practical option. Sure, it was warm in the evening and it was certainly warm within the crowd, but now that they were walking through the sand at a slow pace it was starting to get cold. 

“Do you want my jacket? I have plenty of them!” Steven couldn’t help but laugh awkwardly as he pointed to the pink varsity jacket that Connie had always been so interested in along with the black hoodie that sat underneath. 

Connie was incredibly impressed that he managed to keep both of them on throughout the entire night. Was he not hot? He must have been boiling! 

“Really? Is that okay?” Connie didn’t want to be the generic kind of girl who took the gentleman’s jacket - but she truly was cold. It felt as if she didn’t get something around her she may have just frozen to death right then and there on the sand. 

“Of course, here!” Steven didn’t hesitate to take the pink varsity off his back, holding it out for Connie to post her arms into. 

Connie moved back into the jacket, instantly feeling as if she had been gifted with a thermal blanket. The jacket was already so warm from where Steven had spent the whole evening inside of it. Not only that, but the jacket sleeves were far too long for her. The jacket itself was also quite long in the body and practically drowned Connie to the point where her jean shorts were barely visible. The jacket didn’t look large on Steven in the slightest, it was barely even baggy.

Connie put her hands in the pockets to help warm them up. The jacket smelt like Steven. The smell of what could have only been a combination of an overpowering aftershave, coffee and sweat. It was a welcoming smell that Connie had gotten used to every time that he had walked into the shop. However, tonight it seemed as if the aftershave was a lot stronger. 

“It’s a little big!” Connie laughed as she removed her hands from the pockets to show Steven the sheer size of the jacket. 

“It suits you.” Steven smirked, Connie was the first person to wear his jacket beside himself. Despite the jacket being huge - she looked fantastic. 

Was he trying to flirt with her again? Connie was too caught up in the moment to make the analysis, still distracted by the smell of Steven that drowned the jacket. 

“Is your house far away?” Connie questioned, trying not to be too distracted before getting to the task at hand. She needed to get back before her parent’s curfew and not taking the bus was a big risk, but one that she was willing to take for...a boy. 

Never in her life did she think she would have done anything so rash. 

“Nope. Just around that corner - come on!” Steven gestured for her to start to follow him after pointing over to the hill in the distance. 

They began to walk along the beach, Connie’s impractical footwear slowly filling with sand. She suddenly envied Steven’s choice to wear flip flops. If Steven had lived in Beach City his whole life he had probably been by the beach the whole time, it was unlikely he did wear anything but flip flops. 

They continued to walk together, the only thing illuminating their conversation being the moonlight reflecting down on the ocean and then back up to them. It was a beautiful night and the sky was covered in stars. Connie could have looked up and named half of the constellations in the sky, but she didn’t quite know if Steven would have found that lame or not. He seemed to be the sort of person that would have appreciated anything that the earth had to offer but she wasn't willing to take a chance on it. 

As they went around the corner where the big hill was, Connie hadn’t quite anticipated what she was going to see. Built upon the side of the hill was a beautiful house with steps leading all the way down to just above the beach below. It was one of the cutest houses that Connie had ever seen and considering the generic two bedroom townhouse that she lived in, the beach house was certainly something to marvel at. 

“Woah. You live here?” Connie gasped, looking up at the house on the hill. 

“Yeah, I live here with my aunts. Cool - right?” Steven suddenly took his keys out of his pocket and spun them around his finger, making a sweet clanging noise in the middle of the night. It wasn’t loud, but with the only other sound being the gentle tide pulling in and out it could have woken the neighbourhood up. 

“Really cool.” Connie complimented - it was certainly a beautiful little house. 

They both walked towards the car that was parked by the bottom of the house. Steven stepped around the side of the car towards the driver’s seat and unlocked the door with his key. Connie opened up the car and sat herself down in the passenger seat. 

At first glance, the car was pretty old. Although she didn’t know much about cars, the cassette player that sat in the middle of the dash was a clear indicator of its age. Although the car seemed well looked after, the stitching on the passenger seat was starting to fray just below where the underside of her knee was placed. The car smelled like vanilla, the smell coming from the yellow tree-shaped air freshener than hung from the rearview mirror. There was a half-finished coffee cup sat in the cup holder - it was from Beach City Coffee.

Steven proudly started the engine of the car. He loved the independence that came with being able to drive. It was a lot different from being suffocated by his aunts for every little thing that he did. At least the car was his. It was his own personal space that he could use to get away. 

“Buckle up!” Steven instructed as he pulled his own seatbelt across his chest, Connie copied the action as she watched him press down on the clutch and switch the car to first gear. 

Not only did Steven drive - he drove a stick shift! That was truly impressive in itself. Not even her parents knew how to drive stick and she probably wouldn’t have even attempted it if she ever went to get her license. 

"So, where am I driving to?" Steven asked, shifting gear once more as the car picked up some speed on the sand below. 

Connie was quick to mention where she lived, or at least some landmarks in the area that Steven may have recognised the name of. After Connie spoke about where she lived, Steven knew the place immediately. It wasn't as if he had been there often, but he had driven past a lot. 

Connie sat comfortably in the passenger seat, a suitable temperature as she hugged her arms and kept herself warm inside the jacket. It wasn't so cold inside the car, but a part of her wasn't quite ready to get rid of the pink varsity jacket just yet. 

Steven had truly made her evening one of the bed evenings she had ever experienced. It wasn't as if she went out with any friends very often, but it certainly beat every time before that. Whenever she went out with her other friends it felt as if she spent the whole time on the way home reflecting on what she could have said differently. What she could have said that may have made everyone appreciate her more. 

Steven didn't make Connie feel that way. Instead, he had made her feel special. She was his sole focus and he wasn't going to leave her. Admittedly, when he went to go and get the sodas she felt a little lonely and a part of her had worried that he wouldn't have come back. Seeing Daniel there just made things way worse. It made her realise her friends really didn't care about her, as much as their facade told her otherwise. 

"So, what did you think of the music?" Steven attempted to start a conversation, one in which would lead them all the way out of town so the heavy silence didn't blanket them the whole way there. 

"I loved it. I hope I get to go again next year." Connie beamed despite Steven's concentration on the road, unable to see her expression. She really did love all of the bands that played, each piece of music that she heard was great and filled with energy. 

Steven hoped that he still knew Connie next year. Maybe then they could have gone together again? It was much better than going with his aunts and had certainly topped most of the times in which he had gone with his dad in recent years. It wasn't quite the same as it was when he was a kid. 

"Me too. It'll be good to see you there. It was really fun!" 

"Yeah, it was!" Connie had to admit, it was a lot of fun! A lot more fun than she'd had in quite a long time. 

Connie leant her elbow against the window, staring out as the world passed them by. Nothing could have beaten the clear sky that evening - it was perfect. The stars had never shined brighter. 

Steven noticed her staring out of the window, he glanced over towards her, exchanging his looks between Connie and the road. She was gorgeous, in the sense of both looks and personality. He had never quite felt this way about anyone before and yet at that moment with her bundled up in his jacket he couldn't feel anything else. 

Steven was falling for her. 

Connie glanced back towards Steven, feeling his eyes watching her. Steven diverted his stare back to the road as he squeezed the steering wheel. He didn't quite mean to hold his gaze for quite so long. 

Connie knew that Steven was looking at her and for the first time - she didn't mind. She was starting to get comfortable with the idea that he could just like her…

"I'm sorry." Steven suddenly mumbled, unable to keep his eyes off the road ahead. He nervously held onto the steering wheel, running his hands back and forth. 

"What for?" Connie questioned, sitting back up in the seat. 

"You're just...you're really pretty…" Steven practically choked on the words, unable to hold them in. 

"Oh...thanks. You're...pretty too." Connie blushed a shade of crimson, redder than any other time that night. She noticed that he was referring to the fact that he couldn’t quite keep his eyes off her. 

Steven laughed nervously, he was starting to sweat under the pressure. His words had come with so much weight. Everything that he had said was correct, but he certainly didn’t want to freak her out. Was that too much? Had he ruined just about everything? 

“Really?” Steven snorted, unable to control himself at the comment. For someone who was incredibly self-conscious, although the words sounded silly - they had meant a lot to him. 

“Yeah, you are!”

“Thanks.” 

“You’re welcome.” Connie brushed back her hair, their interactions were awkward and yet they flowed so well together. 

Steven was trying his hardest not to lose his attention on the road, finding it incredibly difficult knowing that the girl beside him had complimented him in such a way he had never been complimented before. He couldn’t tell if she was just talking as a way of being polite by counteracting each of his words. 

Steven didn’t care. Even if she was, he felt good and wouldn’t have let anything ruin it. 

“Oh, it’s this one!” Connie pointed to the front of her house, she hoped that her parents weren’t still waiting for her to arrive back home. She certainly didn’t want them to find out that a boy had dropped her home…

Steven stopped the car right outside of her house, pulling up beside the sidewalk and pulling up the handbrake to stop the car. Steven glanced out of the window and admired the small townhouse squeezed between other residents. It looked nice to be in such a full street in comparison to living somewhere where the nearest other household was around a ten-minute walk away. There was peace in the quiet, but Steven longed for some hustle and bustle of everyday life. 

As much as Steven wanted to stick around for as long as possible, he knew that he couldn’t. He had to leave. He had to say goodbye to Connie. He kept the car running as he held onto his seatbelt and looked over at Connie. 

“Thanks for coming with me tonight, it’s been really fun.” Steven was thankful that Connie had accepted his invite. It had been much better than he knew the event would have been if he were to go with anyone else. 

“No, thank you for inviting me! I would have never found out how fun it was without you!” Connie countered, if Steven hadn't been there that night there was no way she would have enjoyed herself quite so much. Maybe it wasn’t quite the music and atmosphere that she enjoyed the most about her evening - perhaps it was Steven? 

“Maybe you would like to do something like it again? Go out...with me, I mean?” Steven rubbed the back of his neck, staring out of the windscreen at a flickering streetlamp halfway down the street. He suddenly realised how what he said may have come across. “Well, not as a date. That would be...um...u-unless maybe you wanted it to be? A date, I mean.” Steven couldn’t quite get his words out the way he wanted to. 

Connie looked back at the boy who was now melting in the driver’s seat, she could tell just how afraid he was to ask the question. She instantly admired his bravery and his somewhat slick yet awkward attempts at flirting with her throughout the night. Of course, she had noticed. 

Connie felt special. Nobody had ever treated her the way in which Steven did that evening. Connie wasn’t quite sure how she felt about the boy, but it certainly wasn’t a feeling that you would have felt toward someone that you considered ‘just a friend’. 

He had...asked her on a date! 

Connie was internally screaming. Nobody had ever asked her on a date before! 

“I would love to.” Connie smiled at Steven’s question. It was a silly question to ask - she would have loved to go on a date with him. 

Steven’s heart exploded into a million pieces. She had said yes! Connie wanted to go on a date with...him! With Steven Universe! 

Steven took a sharp breath inwards, attempting not to get too emotional at the moment. He couldn’t quite express his excitement the way in which he wanted to. The happiness he felt within him needed to come out at some point. 

“I guess I’ll text you?” 

“That would be nice. Do you want your jacket back?” Connie confirmed as she clicked her seatbelt open and sat forward, ready to remove the jacket from her back. 

“You can keep it, for now, it’s still pretty cold out. Besides, it suits you!” Steven assured. He wanted her to take his jacket, he couldn’t quite tell her just yet how good she did look draped in the pink varsity. 

“I’ll take it with me to work if you want to collect it from me there?” It was simply an excuse for him to come into the shop to see her earlier than anticipated. 

“That sounds like a good plan.”

They sat for a moment in silence, staring at each other once again for a lot longer than maybe they should have. 

“Well, thanks again for tonight and for the ride. I’ll see you soon?” Connie nodded as she held her hand on the car door handle, ready to leave. 

“No problem, it was amazing. I’ll text you.” Steven confirmed as Connie stepped out of the car. 

“Sure thing! Bye, Steven.” Connie shut the door, the way in which she had said his name echoed throughout the car. 

Steven held onto the steering wheel as he watched Connie walk in front of the car and down the pathway to her house. He watched her carefully as she reached into her back pocket for a key and unlocked the door. Just before she stepped inside she waved back at Steven, her hand half-covered by the sleeve of the pink varsity jacket that was far too large for her. 

Steven sat in the car and waved back, a huge smile spread across his face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Been getting such an amazing response the past day, especially on Tumblr. Please keep it up - it makes me incredibly happy! Sometimes I'll really struggle to write and I'll just go back and read some sweet comments you guys have left on my various fics or screamed at me in Tumblr tags. My ask box is open btw! 
> 
> This fanfiction isn't free, the charge is one comment below. If you like this story, tell me why! Favourite scene? Favourite character? Things you're most excited for in future chapters? LET ME KNOW <3
> 
> Please insert comment before continuing...


	8. Earl Grey Tea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connie finds holding onto Steven's jacket to be a lot harder than first anticipated. 
> 
> Then comes the time to give that jacket back...unless...maybe not...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just want to give a huge shoutout to my bud @FixOrRideDaily who essentially wrote the Connie and Steven's jacket scene in this chapter. A similar scene appears in their fic 'Connie's Not-So-Mythical Boyfriend' (https://archiveofourown.org/works/24604612) which is FANTASTIC by the way!!! 100% needs your attention. 
> 
> Added the scene to this fic and then we spoke about the addition of Connie's mother and what she could say etc. Awesome stuff, thanks man. You're the best <3

Connie shouldn’t have taken Steven’s jacket. It was a huge mistake. 

For starters, she had to hide it from her parents for the rest of the weekend. Or at least hidden well enough for her parents not to question where she had gotten the jacket from. 

After getting back home she had hung it up on the back of the chair by her desk, it was Steven’s property and she certainly didn’t want to ruin it. After falling asleep and waking up the next morning the first thing that she saw across the room was the pink and white varsity jacket that the boy had given her. It was tormenting her. 

Connie started off her day by studying at her desk, the jacket still hanging up on the chair that she was sitting on. It began apparent that the jacket smelled...like Steven. It wasn’t a bad thing, but it certainly was distracting. 

Connie wasn’t quite sure if it was her hormones or not, but the smell of the jacket was driving her a different kind of crazy. It was making her think of Steven more than she had first anticipated, a longing for them to once again spend some time together. He just wouldn’t leave her alone. 

She placed the jacket on the opposite side of the room as a way to get the smell out of her nose - out of her mind. 

It didn’t help. It just made her think of him more. 

Frustrated, Connie put the jacket on and leant back in her desk chair before lifting it to her nose and inhaling deeply. It smelt so strongly of the aftershave that he had coated himself in the night before. 

He had been so sweet to her all night. He was so kind and seemed so loving. The way that his eyes sparkled when he saw her. The way in which his lips curled at the sides when he looked at her. The soft-touch of his warm hands. The way their hands fitted so perfectly together. 

His hair! Oh how desperately she wanted to take that hat off his head and touch his beautiful curly hair. Why would he ruin such great hair by wearing a snapback? Connie wasn’t sure, but either way, the fashion statement suited him. 

Connie groaned as she hit her forehead against her desk. 

She liked him. Oh…

Why did she have to like him? Oh, but he was so cute! 

No, he was handsome! 

Oh no, he was hot. 

It seemed as if Connie was never getting any work done that weekend and it was all Steven’s fault. She couldn’t let a boy overtake the importance of her education, but...he was just so sweet! She couldn’t help it! 

“What are you wearing?” A bellowing voice sounded from behind. Connie dramatically spun around in the chair, accidentally knocking her textbook to the floor in shock. 

“What?” Connie gasped, she hadn’t quite expected her mother to come into the room unannounced. 

“Where did you get that pink jacket from?” Her mother stood tall in the doorway, her hands placed on her hips as a way to show her authority. 

“What pink jacket?” 

“The one you’re wearing.” Connie’s mother scowled at the jacket that was far too big for her daughter. 

Connie’s eyes widened at the realisation that she was still wearing Steven’s jacket. The pink and white varsity jacket that smelt so strongly of the boy that she had suddenly started to feel such intense emotions for. 

“This? Oh, I bought it." Connie sweated through her lie. She never lied to her parents! 

"It's three sizes too big." 

"Y'know...kids and their fashion." Connie chuckled nervously as her mother shot her a menacing glare. 

"That's incredibly impractical, I hope you kept the receipt so you can change it for a more sensible size." 

"Yes Ma'am, I will get it changed." Connie smiled awkwardly, her mother exiting the room. Connie's mother hadn't mentioned anything other than the jacket which made Connie wonder as to why she was checking in on her. She imagined it was something to do with studying. 

Connie sank into the chair - that was a close one! She was just glad that her mother didn't step any closer because then there could have been hassle between them both. As long as she didn't smell men's aftershave on the jacket the whole thing was...fine. 

Her parents couldn't know about Steven, they would never let her leave the house ever again. 

Steven, on the other hand, had quite an exciting night after leaving Connie’s house. He had pulled away from the sidewalk, holding in his excitement as he got out of the densely populated area of the town. 

As soon as he got onto the fast roads surrounded by nothing but fields he rolled down the window and screamed out the window. 

“Wooooohooooo!!!!! Yeah!” Steven shouted out the window to nobody in particular. It was more about releasing that built up excitement that was starting to flood out of him at million miles per hour. 

Connie had said yes to a date! 

He had never been on a date before, but he already knew that spending any time with Connie would have been fantastic whether that meant it was a date or not. He couldn’t quite comprehend how happy he was.

Steven flicked on the radio and tapped his hands against the steering wheel as he drove back home. He was certainly on cloud nine and nobody would have been able to bring him down. 

It was Monday when Connie returned back to work, the pink jacket draped over her arm. She had sat with it on her lap the whole bus journey into Beach City, unable to take her eyes off it. She began to play with a loose bit of thread on the cuff that was beginning to fray, it was clear that the jacket was well-loved and had been worn and washed numerous times. 

Connie stepped into the back of the coffee shop, clocking in and placing her bag up on the hook she was provided. Just as she was about to hang the jacket up both Sadie and Lars stepped into the room. 

"Oh my god, you slept together?!?!" Lars' eyes widened at the sight of the jacket. 

"What?" Connie practically shouted back in confusion. 

"He left his jacket at your place?" 

"No, he gave the jacket because I was cold. I just need to return it to him." Connie told the truth as she placed the jacket on the hook, suddenly getting a strong whiff of the after-shave that had plagued her whole weekend. 

"Aw, that's adorable!" Sadie suddenly butted in, being far nicer and understanding than Lars was about the situation. 

"Ew." Lars didn't quite understand the need for that kind of romantic gesture. 

"C'mon Lars, it's nice! Steven's such a gentleman." Sadie swooned at the gesture, Steven was adorable there were no two ways about it. 

"Hey Sadie, do you want my jacket?" Lars piped up. 

"That's not how it works, Lars." Sadie scowled. 

"How does it work then?" 

"For a start, it has to be cold and I need to be in need of a jacket. It's a romantic gesture to show someone that you care for them. You're willing to sacrifice your warmth for them. Also, it would help if all your jacket didn't smell like cigarettes and cereal. Girls do not...dig that." Sadie explained as she folded her arms and looked up at Lars. 

"Hey! That's...shut up!" Lars didn't quite enjoy being mocked. 

Sadie was right...Steven giving Connie his jacket had been a romantic gesture. He did like her. He liked her enough to want to go on a date. A second date? 

There was no way to be sure. 

"Anyway, we're going out again soon. Not sure when or what, but I'm sure we'll figure something out." Connie casually mentioned in passing as she swung the apron over the top of her head and readjusted the name badge that had been knocked out of place. 

"Wait, he's taking you on a second date?" Lars was shocked, there was no way that Steven had actually managed to win over Connie. Lars was impressed. 

"Well...technically a first date." Connie shrugged. 

"He gave you his jacket, Connie. Even I know that's pretty telling of a first date." Sadie explained before stepping over to her hook on the wall and also placing the apron over her head. They hadn't opened yet and having the silence in the coffee shop was nice before the morning rush. 

"Well, we only went as friends." Connie assured, there was no way that it could have been a date. 

"And you came out the other side with a second date. That's exactly how relationships work, y'know. You get to know each other and then you just...keep going out." Lars couldn't help but provide everyone with his input on the matter. 

"I hate to say it, but Lars is kind of right. I think Steven really likes you…" Sadie shrugged, unable to look at Lars as a way of not feeding his smug grin. Sadie knew if she gave him anymore ego his head may have exploded. 

Wait. Did Steven like Connie? Was that enough confirmation to say that it was true? 

It had to be. 

Most of the things that they had done throughout the evening could have been considered romantic. He had even called her pretty, unannounced yet accepted. 

"I mean...he is really sweet." Connie practically blushed as she tucked her hair underneath her cap, unable to stop thinking about the teenager. 

"Connie and Steven sitting in a-" 

"How old are you? Five?" Sadie immediately shoved Lars in the stomach making him wince. Okay, maybe he deserved that one. 

It felt strange to hear their names together in a sentence. Connie and Steven. Steven and Connie. Strung together as if they had years of memories. Their names fitted perfectly together. 

Connie found it hard to concentrate at work, once again infatuated with thoughts about the teenager. Her eyes kept lingering by the door, just hoping that Steven would waltz through and ask for a drink. It didn't have to be anything special, just enough for them to strike a conversation. 

Steven had managed to torture her for the whole day until the afternoon in which he strolled through the door as if Connie hadn't been waiting for him the whole time. Connie didn't quite know if Steven felt quite the way that she felt about him, was he also troubled with these thoughts? Maybe if she had given him a jacket, he might have done. 

Steven didn't need a jacket to think about Connie, having spent most of the previous day with his thumbs hovering over the keyboard, ready to text her. He didn't quite know how to start, so just continued to scroll up on their previous conversation. 

He was nervous to show his face again after they had been out together. After all, in one of their last interactions he had called her pretty. That was enough to boost his anxiety. He really hoped she didn't mind him saying that, it was just so true! 

Connie looked over at the door every single time a customer walked into the coffee shop. Of course, she was on the lookout for the one customer that she wanted to serve more than anything. The one in which she could have made a silly drink for and he wouldn’t have minded in the slightest. 

Steven rolled into the shop in the middle of the afternoon, as soon as he walked in he looked towards the counter to try and find the girl that had been on his mind all weekend. Of course, Connie had been checking every single customer to see if they were Steven, but as soon as it was Steven her heart dropped. They quickly exchanged smiles, noticing that they had both locked eyes from across the room. It was as if Connie was the first thing he saw as soon as he walked into the room. 

It was strange to see him without the pink varsity jacket, instead, he was dressed in his other usual attire of a black snapback and black hoodie. His outfit didn’t quite seem complete without the splash of pink from the jacket. The retro-looking white sneakers with colourful stripes down the sides of them that were sat on his feet were certainly a more practical choice over the flip flops he had worn the other day. 

Connie felt somewhat bad that she hadn’t managed to get a single text to Steven over the remainder of the weekend. She hoped that he didn’t think too much into it, it wasn’t because she didn’t want to speak to him, but she didn’t quite know what to say. They were both as bad as each other when it came to communication. Especially communication that involved small talk. 

“Hi.” A voice spoke softly as they placed both of their elbows against the counter. 

Connie glanced upwards to meet the boy’s eyes. She hadn’t quite clocked on when he had walked over to the counter, too entranced to even notice. He had just appeared out of nowhere. 

“Hi.” Connie echoed, frozen in front of the cash register. 

Steven pressed his chin against his hands as he leant on the counter, something that he had probably done thousands of times before in the presence of Lars and Sadie when ordering. 

“When do you finish work?” 

“Six.”

“Oh, that’s a long time away.” 

“It’s only three hours.” 

“Three hours is a long time.” Steven glanced away with a sad expression. He had said that he was going to text her, but didn’t quite have the guts. Surprisingly, he found it a lot easier to speak to her in person than over text. 

Well, it wasn’t that he found it easy so to speak - it was more so that he could see her. 

“Not as long as four hours.” Connie commented. 

“Yeah, you’re right.” Steven removed his head from his hands and stood up straight, no longer sulking. 

“Why?” Connie cocked an eyebrow. 

“Why what?”

“Why do you want to know when I finish work?” 

Steven took a deep breath and looked around the room, it had taken a lot of confidence for him to have walked into the coffee shop. In fact, it had taken him all day to build upon that confidence which is why it was already three o’clock by the time that he had walked in. Although, it seemed that Connie gave him the confidence he needed to do just about anything. 

“I was going to ask if you wanted to hang out...if that’s...okay?” Steven scratched the back of his neck as he spoke, unsure where else to place his hands. 

Connie’s face lit up with a smile that she didn’t quite mean to be so wide, most of the happiness was unable to contain itself within her. She wanted to scream with excitement, of course she wanted to hang out with Steven. 

Although, her school hadn’t quite broken up completely for summer just yet. Connie still had a lot of studying to do, but hanging out with Steven for a few hours wouldn’t have changed that. She could have studied later on in the evening, that shouldn’t have been a problem. It wasn’t as if she went out very often. 

All she had to do was let her mother know that she was studying at a friend’s house. It was that simple. She had never given her mother a reason to suspect any different - Connie was a pretty good kid. Especially when it came to academics. 

“Is this the date?” Connie questioned, making Steven blush.

“N-no. Well, I wanted the date to be...a little more special. I thought maybe we could just hang out and talk, maybe we could get ice cream or something? I don't know. I just wanted to spend some time with you again.” Steven spoke in a nervous tone, Connie instantly picking up on his anxiety. She found it sweet that he got so flustered when speaking about them spending time together. 

“That would be...really nice.” Connie practically swooned just thinking about doing just that. 

She looked over the counter at the teenager standing before her, wondering what it would have felt like to be held in his arms. Connie imagined that he was just as warm as the jacket the first time that she had put it in. He must have smelt strongly of the aftershave too. He certainly looked like he gave the best hugs in existence and Connie couldn’t wait to find out. 

“Yeah?” Steven smirked, Connie starting to go along with his plans more often than not. 

“Yeah…” Connie couldn’t stop studying each and every one of his facial features. 

“So, I’ll meet you back here at six?” Steven pulled out his phone to check the time before sliding it back into his pocket. 

“Around the back.” Connie confirmed. 

“Okay, that sounds good. See you then.” Steven lifted his hand to wave as he turned to exit. 

“Hey, wait! Didn’t you want a drink?” Connie called back. 

Steven stopped, placing both his hand in his pockets and turning his head back towards the barista. 

“It’s okay, I didn’t come here for a coffee today.” Steven winked before making his exit out of the coffee shop. 

Did he…

Did he just wink? 

Was he...flirting? 

Was Steven suggesting that the only reason he came into the coffee shop was to see...Connie? 

“Oh my…” Connie gasped under her breath. 

The door sounded from behind her, Lars and Sadie coming back from the stockroom with both of their arms filled with boxes from the delivery that they had just taken in. It was mostly new cups, straws and napkins. 

“What did we miss?” Lars asked as he placed the box he was holding on the floor under the counter. 

Connie turned to face him, unable to find quite the right words after her interaction with the...customer.

“Just...a few regulars…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I keep thinking 'wow, how can I make this story cuter?', well, I think I've figured that out. 
> 
> You'll see in the next chapter...TRUST ME, IT'S CUTE!
> 
> Oh...did I mention it's also a little sad? No? WHOOPS...
> 
> Thanks for all that comment payment yesterday, managed to write like two chapters from all that feedback. Keep it up - please! I love you guys.


	9. Hot Chocolate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven takes Connie to a place that only he knows about. 
> 
> It's pretty, but so is Connie...

Connie couldn’t quite wait for it to be six. Steven coming in and mentioning that he would have come back then made the rest of the day go incredibly slowly. Connie couldn’t help but watch the clock and found herself looking up at it near enough every five minutes. 

When it finally got to closing, Connie had never taken her apron off so fast, signing her name on a piece of paper to indicate how many hours she had worked. Lars and Sadie certainly noticed the pep in her step. 

Connie waited around in the storeroom as Lars made sure that everything was completely locked up for the night. Connie checked her phone, noticing that she had received a text five minutes ago. 

‘I’m outside! :^)’

Oh, he had even sent an emoji. That was sweet. 

‘I’m still inside! :^(‘ Connie quickly texted back, hoping that he would have appreciated the humour. 

On the other side of the door out of the back of the coffee shop, Steven was leaning against the wall awaiting Connie. He had been pretty excited about being able to hang out with Connie again, there was nothing that he wanted to do more. 

Steven noticed the notification pop up on the top of his phone, making him smile. She had texted him back, despite only being a minute away from seeing one another. Not only that, but she had also texted back in the same vein in which he had texted her. It was sweet and Steven truly did appreciate the humour. 

Connie waited patiently as Lars and Sadie made their way to the exit after finally locking everything up within the store, ready for trade the next morning. Connie had hung the pick varsity jacket over her arm, noticing that she didn’t have a jacket herself. It was warm in the morning, but now the town was covered by an overcast of clouds. Connie hoped that it wasn’t too cold outside else she may have to ask Steven if she could have used the jacket again. 

Lars pulled open the back door and Steven jumped as he heard it open.

“Steven? Do you live in the dumpster or something? What the hell are you doing back here?” Lars practically shouted in shock, not quite wanting to admit that Steven had also made him jump. 

“Sorry, I was waiting for Connie.” Steven shrugged, the words falling from his lips so casually as if they didn’t hold any weight. It sounded so natural. 

“Oh…” Lars watched as Connie stepped past him and stood beside Steven with her bag thrown over her shoulder and the pink jacket in her hands. 

“Ready?” Steven glanced toward Connie. 

“Ready. See you tomorrow, guys!” Connie nodded with confirmation before waving back at Lars and Sadie as she walked off with Steven. 

Lars and Sadie stood by the door, both of them with a confused look spread across their face. Were they...dating? 

“What’s going on?” Lars mumbled under his breath to Sadie as both Steven and Connie walked off into the distance, Steven looking as if he was already explaining something. 

“Just be happy for them - alright?” 

“Yeah…” Lars grumbled, it was strange for him to see Steven so happy looking. Especially with a girl! 

Steven and Connie walked away from the coffee shop, Steven was the first one to start speaking as a way to stop any kind of awkward silence that may have been held over them. 

“S-sorry for asking you whilst you were at work. I tried texting, but I thought it was a little impersonal. I wanted to ask you in person if you wanted to hang out, but don’t feel like just because I put you in the spot you had to say yes. I don’t want it to put any pressure on you and I really don’t want to come across as-” Steven started to waffle, his words coming out in quick succession. He folded over his arms as a way to defend himself from any kind of backlash that he may have received from Connie. 

Connie made sure to stop them both from walking any further, it seemed as if Steven was stressed about the whole thing when he really didn’t need to be. 

“Steven, it’s okay! I want to hang out with you.” Connie reassured, not quite realising that between them stopping in the middle of the sidewalk and Steven’s quick words that she had gently placed her hand on his arm as a way to settle him. The fabric of the hoodie was soft under the touch of the palm of her hand, not only soft, but it was also warm. A comfortable temperature. 

“Oh. Sorry.” Steven looked away, he was clearly feeling guilty. He didn’t want to seem overwhelming or needy. It was just that Connie seemed so kind and understanding that he felt as if he could have shared anything with her, despite not even knowing her that well. 

“You don’t need to be sorry.” Connie gave him a sympathetic smile. 

Steven wasn’t quite sure how to respond, glancing down at Connie’s hand that had been placed on his arm. It felt comforting and yet as soon as she noticed he was looking she pulled away, quite clearly nervous. He noticed that she was still holding his jacket over her arm. 

“Hey, can I show you somewhere really cool?” Steven immediately perked up, switching his mood almost instantly. 

“Sure…” 

“We might need to drive there if that’s okay? I bought my car.” Steven pointed down the block to his car. Considering the coffee shop was so close to his house, Connie found it strange that he had driven there. Not only that, but it also seemed as if he had parked his car somewhere completely out of the way of prying eyes. Or at least anyone that may have made their way down the main street. 

“Yeah, that’ll be fun. Where are we going?” Connie questioned as they both started to walk up the block to the car. 

“That would ruin the surprise. You’ll like it. It’s pretty.” Steven spun his keys around his fingers just as he had done Saturday night. 

It made Connie feel special that Steven wanted to show her somewhere, potentially somewhere that only he knew the location of? Knowing Steven’s nature from their limited interactions, it came to no surprise that he knew somewhere in Beach City that other people didn’t quite know about. Somewhere pretty at that!

She was also somewhat nervous about going somewhere completely random with Steven. It wasn't as if she didn't trust him, but they certainly didn't know each other that...well. Her mother would have killed her for her irresponsible actions, which was hilarious considering she may have been killed by Steven...the raging psychopath who took girls on drives to lure them into a trap. 

Connie once again sat herself down in the passenger seat as Steven started the engine. 

"Do you want your jacket back?" Connie asked, still holding it on her lap. He hadn't asked for it back yet. 

"Throw it in the backseat or...if you want you can keep a hold of it for now. Might be cold where we're going." Steven suggested he wanted Connie to be comfortable, but he also got a kick out of seeing her in the jacket. It was adorable. 

"Cold?" 

"Well, not freezing - but there might be a chill." 

"Where are you taking me? A fridge?" Connie snorted, the theory of Steven potentially being an axe murderer entering her mind once again. 

"Um...no, I'm sorry to say there isn't any food there." Steven jokingly sighed before turning to Connie and giving her a smile. 

Steven began to drive just outside of town, it wasn't too far in the slightest although it would have been a pain to walk. Steven parked his car along the side of the road, Connie questioning whether or not parking his car there would have gotten him a ticket. Steven insisted he had done it plenty of times and was yet to get in trouble, which managed to calm Connie slightly. 

Steven and Connie stood together at the side of the road, the only thing in sight being greenery. The sides of the road were littered with small hills, trees and plenty of grass and flowers. Connie thought it was already pretty, most of the sights being missed when travelling by car. 

"So, it's a bit of a walk. We're going up there!" Steven pointed to the top of the hill beside them. 

Connie swung the pink varsity jacket over her shoulders once again, this time it wasn't so revealing as the jeans and white shirt she wore for work matching the oversized jacket perfectly. Steven was certainly right about it being cold, with the overcast sky they needed a bit of sun for it to warm up. 

"Do you come here a lot?" Connie questioned as she stepped off the side of the road and began to walk on the grass beside Steven. The hill was pretty steep, but not steep enough to cause any strain in her calves. 

"Sometimes. What's really special is the view from the top. You'll love it." Steven insisted once more as they both continued to walk up the hill. 

Steven wanted to show Connie the view from the top of a hill that he liked? That didn't quite sound like an axe murderer, although, she did watch a horror film at a sleepover once that followed a similar plot…

Although, even if Steven was an axe murderer the way in which he looked back at her to make sure she was keeping up as they climbed the hill was adorable. He was making sure that she was okay, despite climbing the hill himself what seemed like a million times, it was probably pretty difficult for someone who had never been there before. 

"This bit is pretty steep, just be careful." Steven informed Connie as he reached out his hand for her to hold onto. 

Connie grabbed ahold of his hand, allowing herself to balance with his aid. Once again the soft touch of his hand surprised her but gave her considerable comfort as the hill got steeper. He helped pull her up onto some of the harder sections of the walk that he had struggled with himself when first attempting the climb. 

Although the walk was somewhat challenging at points, it didn't take long for them to reach the very top of the hill. Steven held onto Connie as he pulled her up onto the last section of the hill at the very top. 

"Here it is. Beach City!" Steven held his other hand out as he presented the town in all its glory to Connie. 

Connie gasped at the view, the top of the hill covered in beautiful flowers. She was able to see the entirety of Beach City below, from the coffee shop all the way to the hill in the distance which Steven lived behind. If she looked hard enough, she could even see the road which led out of town towards where she lived. 

"Wow…" Connie was speechless. 

"If the tourists knew about this place, well, I'd have to start charging for entry." Steven laughed, glancing down and noticing that he was still holding onto Connie's hand. He gently grazed his thumb against the top of her fingers and unlike last time, she didn't move away. 

“It’s so pretty!” Connie commented as she scanned her eyes through the entirety of the town, everything looked so peaceful below. How had she not discovered this place before? 

“Yeah...it is.” Steven couldn’t take his eyes off Connie as he spoke. 

Steven was the first to let go of Connie’s hand, as much as he didn’t want to stop holding her, he didn’t want to freak her out too much. Steven sat himself down on the grass upon the hill, Connie following his action and sitting beside him, making sure to pull the varsity jacket around her as she sat with her knees tucked to her chest. 

Whilst climbing the hill the cloudy skies began to disperse, it certainly wasn’t as cloudy as it was previously. Connie stared off into the distance, a hazy red sky appearing in the distance above the ocean. They were just in time for the start of the sunset. 

“I had no idea this place existed. This is so nice.” Connie commented, incredibly impressed with the spot up on the hill. 

“You won’t tell anyone my secret, will you?” Steven smirked. 

“No - never.” Connie wouldn’t have told a soul about the location. It seemed special to Steven and she didn’t want to ruin that. 

“Okay, I believe you.” 

Steven stretched his legs out in front of him and leant backwards on his hands, staring up at the sky and taking a deep breath of fresh air. The hill was the only place where he could have gone without seeing anyone else. A place out in the middle of nowhere, a place he could call his own with no disturbances. 

Suddenly, a ringtone began to sound. Steven sat up and fumbled around in his pocket as Connie watched. Steven stared at the phone screen before groaning. 

“Oh no. I’m really sorry, I need to take this.” Steven sighed, clearly unimpressed with whoever it was that decided to call. 

“No, go ahead.” Connie insisted, keeping the jacket around her and removing her attention away from Steven. 

Steven pressed the large green button on the screen and placed the phone against his ear, turning his whole body away from Connie as much as possible without being too rude.

“Hi. No, I’m okay. I just got caught up, my appointment was a few hours ago. I’m out with some friends. No. I’m okay thanks. It went well, but I can talk to you more when I’m home. I’m not, I’m sorry. It doesn’t! Really, I’m fine! Look, I’ll be home later - I’ll talk to you then. Okay? Alright, I love you too. Bye.” Steven practically mumbled into the phone, as much as Connie didn’t want to listen in to his conversation it wasn’t as if she could help to do so when silence surrounded them. 

Steven hung up before sighing deeply down at his phone. 

“Are you okay?” Connie asked, suddenly becoming concerned about Steven’s phone conversation.

“Do you ever just feel like you’re not good enough no matter how much you try?” Steven glanced up from his phone and sighed heavily once more. Connie looked back at him with a look of concern. Steven looked away at the expression, he was too much. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have-”

“It’s okay. I understand that feeling sometimes too.” 

“You do?” Steven lifted his head once more. 

“My parents are pretty controlling when it comes to me and my future. I always feel like there’s always something I need to improve on. It never feels like I’m...enough” Connie commented, sharing her own experience on the subject. That was certainly something that she had never shared with anyone before. It felt nice to be able to say them things out loud when they had haunted her for as long as she could remember. 

“You are enough.” 

“Wow, it feels really nice for someone to say that.” Connie smiled timidly, it did feel nice for someone to say something so simple and yet so kind. 

“Yeah…” Steven threaded his fingers through the blades of grass.

“You’re enough too, y’know?” Connie suddenly commented, attempting to make Steven feel somewhat better. 

“My aunts seem to think I’m...too much.” Steven laughed awkwardly, unsure on how to express his emotions. 

Connie wasn’t quite sure whether or not it was rude to pry, but Steven had opened up the conversation. It seemed as if this was something he found it hard to talk about, or at least something that he wanted to talk about but never got the chance to. 

“Why’s that?” 

“One of my aunts just called to make sure that I had been to therapy. I didn’t...I haven’t been in weeks.” Steven admitted, staring down at the grass with a sad expression. 

“Do you not want to go?” Connie asked a personal question, unable to quite think of anything else to ask. 

It didn’t surprise her that Steven had been in therapy, it wasn’t as if she hadn’t had her fair share of appointments with the school counsellor. Perhaps it wasn’t the same, but she knew that at some point in her life she needed to speak to someone about the anxiety that had attacked her throughout her whole life. Not only that but the sheer stress that came from working her socks off in school and the pressure that came from her parents. 

“Therapy makes me feel like there’s something wrong with me. It made me feel worse about myself. I know it can be an incredibly good outlet for some people, but it just felt wrong for me. I’m just...sad. It doesn’t have a deeper meaning as much as my aunts seem to think it does. They always blame everything on my parents, but if they’re not blaming my dad for being across the country then they’re blaming my Mom for not being here anymore. I think they blame me for her death…” Steven began to rant passionately, it seemed that he had a lot pent up inside of him. 

Connie was taken back by everything that he was saying, Steven really needed someone to speak to and despite Connie being the only person that he could speak to at that moment, she was more than happy to listen. 

“She died when I was born. Childbirth. It was my fault.” Steven tucked his knees to his chest and stared out at Beach City below. 

“That’s not your fault.” Connie’s heart began to break for the boy. Connie had only ever seen the side to Steven that was goofy or the side that was overtly passionate about romance and coffee. 

“If I wasn’t here then my Mom would still be alive. I know they blame me for it.” Steven had completely zoned out, not even quite realising that he was spilling his mind to Connie. A part of him realised that giving this information to Connie was okay, she was trustworthy. 

“You shouldn’t blame yourself for it. It sounds like something that was completely out of your control."

“It just...I’m really sorry. I shouldn’t be speaking about this stuff. I’m sorry.” Steven repeatedly apologised for the way that he was behaving. Everything was going just fine until one of his aunts had to ring to check up on him, provoking emotions within him that he usually allowed himself to simmer in as he drove through town. 

Today was a little bit different now that Connie was hanging out with him. Steven wiped his eyes, preventing any what could have been tears. He was such a pathetic sad-sack and he couldn’t quite believe he had already managed to show Connie that side of him. She would never have wanted to go out on a date with him after finding out quite how pathetic he was. 

Connie shuffled closer to Steven and placed her hand on his shoulder. 

“Steven, it’s okay. You can talk with me about anything. I don’t mind.” Connie reassured as she squeezed her hand on his shoulder ever so slightly so that he knew she was there. She wanted to be the one to comfort him. 

“It’s just...sometimes I get sad. Really sad. I can’t help it.” 

“That’s okay.” 

“It feels awful and there’s nothing I can do about it.” Steven looked over at Connie, his eyes filled with sadness. Connie had never seen him look quite so sad before. 

Steven was embarrassed to admit the full extent of his issues to Connie, but that was a conversation for a different time. It wasn’t as if he had exactly meant to spill as much about himself as he had done on the hill. It seemed as if he truly did trust Connie with some of his most precious secrets. They weren’t so much secrets that nobody knew, just secrets that he didn’t enjoy speaking about with others. 

For some reason, he didn’t quite mind speaking about them with Connie. Of course, he felt like he was somewhat ruining his chances with her, but in a way, it seemed to bring them closer. Steven really felt something special. 

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry you have to feel that way.” Connie didn’t quite know what else to say as she began to pick at the grass below. 

“Thank you for...you’ve been really kind to me.” Steven gently placed his hand on top of Connie’s, stopping her from picking any more of the grass. 

Connie didn’t flinch at the touch, instead, she welcomed Steven’s hand sitting so comfortably on top of hers. Once again, his hand was warm to the touch and she felt immense comfort in the weight of it being there. 

“No, you’ve been so kind to me! You’ve invited me out, gave me the confidence to dance, bought me a soda, given me your jacket, driven me home and even taken me to the most beautiful place in Beach City. Thank you.” Connie flipped the switch, making sure that Steven truly knew everything that he had done for her. 

Connie was right, he had done lots of lovely things for Connie. None of them being things that he wouldn’t have done for something else, but the gestures that he had done for Connie had been different. He knew from the moment that he met her that he would have found it impossible for them to have just been friends. Steven hoped that within time they could have called themselves something more than that. 

“No problem.” Steven whispered, barely audible. He began to chew the inside of his mouth as he stared up at Connie, his thumb softly caressing the top of her hand. 

Connie didn’t want to let him see, but the reality was that she was melting at the touch. They were practically holding hands as they sat upon the hill overlooking Beach City. The sky was so beautiful and so was Connie…

Connie couldn’t keep her eyes off Steven, their stare lingering in each other’s eyes. Just a few weeks ago Steven had walked into the coffee shop and seen a new face who now seemed so familiar and welcoming. 

Connie slowly moved her hand from underneath Steven’s, he felt somewhat bad about the movement until he realised what she was doing. Steven felt Connie’s fingers slide between the gaps in his hand, slowly locking their fingers together as they kept their palms on the grass below. 

“I really like your hat by the way.” Connie mentioned as she finally let her stare go, quickly looking up at the black snapback with the yellow star on the front of it. 

Steven snorted as he took the hat off the top of his head and placed it over Connie’s hair. He hadn’t adjusted the strap on the back, meaning the hat was slightly too big for her. Steven sat the cap slanted upwards on top of her head, allowing it to sit better despite the size being incorrect. 

Connie used her free hand to brush her hair away from her face, the remainder flowing from underneath the snapback and onto her shoulders. Steven was used to seeing her in a baseball cap at work, but with the hat being his own...Steven had become completely smitten. 

“I like my hat too.” Steven smirked as he looked at the girl in front of him dressed in both his jacket and hat, two of his most loved items of clothing. 

Connie so desperately wanted to run her fingers through his hair, suddenly uncovered from the hat that usually hid the fluffy mess away. His hair was everything and she was deeply upset that he wore his hat more often than not. As much as he was incredibly handsome in the snapback, without it he looked like a true gentleman. 

“I think I might have to steal your look. Is that okay?” Connie giggled, adjusting the jacket with her free hand. 

“Mmmmhmmm.” Steven could barely think of any words to say that wouldn’t have been complete and utter dribble, he had never quite felt that way about anyone ever before. 

Steven watched her lips as she moved, he had never wanted to kiss somebody so badly in his entire life. 

Wait. 

Hold on. 

He wanted to kiss her…

Steven tried not to furrow his eyebrows as he attempted to rationalise his thoughts. He had never kissed a girl before. How was he supposed to kiss Connie if he had never done it before? How did he know if that was something that she wanted too? Was this their first date? Was it their second date? Was this even a date at all? 

Was there a rulebook on when you could kiss a girl? Steven forgot to search on the internet before he left today. It wasn’t as if he knew the thought would have popped into his mind. 

Connie noticed that something was processing within Steven’s mind as she sat there in both his varsity jacket and snapback, her fingers still intertwined with one of his hands. His expression switched from a look of concern to a look of love and kindness with a side of the cutest smile that Connie had ever seen. 

It didn’t take Connie long to pick up on the fact that Steven couldn’t stop glancing down at her lips. Was he going to…

Oh no. 

Was he going to try to kiss her? 

What would happen if he tried to kiss her? 

Connie really liked Steven, but she had never kissed a boy before. She had no idea what she was doing! Despite her incognito browser being littered with questions like ‘how do I know if a guy likes me?’ and ‘what does it mean when a guy gives you his jacket?’ she had no idea how to kiss someone! It hadn’t quite crossed her mind just yet. 

Steven noticed the slight panic in Connie’s expression, had she somehow read his mind or was he just easy to read? Was he making her uncomfortable? 

“Are you okay with this?” Steven quickly glanced down towards their fingers slotted tightly together. Of course, he wasn’t quite just referring to their hands. He was referring to them being that close together.

“Yeah…” 

Steven shuffled closer, still making sure he was held tightly onto Connie’s hand. He didn’t want to lose her. He quickly looked out at the sunset before focusing his attention back on Connie. Steven ran his fingers through his hair, the same action that Connie wanted to do to the fluffy unkempt mess. He felt as if he should have been nervous, but he was considerably calm under the circumstance. 

“Can I...Can I kiss you?” Steven stuttered on his words as they fell so messily from his lips. 

Connie wanted to be shocked by the words, but the way in which he had been looking at her the question came to no surprise at all. The way in which he had asked permission from Connie before even making a move completely calmed her down. There was no need to panic. If she was going to have her first kiss it may have been with Steven Universe. He was going to make her feel comfortable no matter what. 

“Yes.” Connie nodded slowly as she spoke. This was something she wanted to experience and she wanted to experience it with Steven. 

Connie watched as Steven swallowed his nerves, attempting to figure out what to do now that he had been granted permission. It was easy. All he had to do was kiss her and that was it. Where did he put his hands? It certainly didn’t look this complicated on television. 

Connie waited anxiously in anticipation, if he didn’t make his move soon she would have done it for him. There was too much awkwardness to hold onto it for too long. Steven bit the inside of his lips as he glanced down at their hands one last time. It was time to take the dive. 

Steven leant forward, slowly planting his lips on top of Connie’s. Connie instantly shut her eyes, just like his hands, his lips were as soft as ever. He lingered for just a second before gently releasing himself from the kiss. 

Steven wasn’t quite sure if he had done it correctly, but it sure did feel good. A simple kiss and yet it felt so...good. 

They looked into each other’s eyes in the sunset. Connie hadn’t quite felt anything like that ever before and neither had Steven. Connie was pretty interested to see how kissing someone may have felt, so without a moment’s notice she pressed her lips against Stevens once more. 

Steven certainly didn’t expect the second kiss, closing his eyes upon impact and proudly accepting the intimacy and desire to be closer. Just like the first kiss, it only lasted a second before they moved away. 

They both lingered close to one another for a little while longer. Connie began to laugh, Steven quickly joining in on the action. They were so close to being forehead to forehead. Neither of them said a word as they chuckled to each other before suddenly stopping and looking directly at the eyes of their counterpart.

They both wanted the same thing. A kiss. 

Steven and Connie both went in for the next kiss, this time when their lips collided they stayed together for much longer. Once completing their first kiss they no longer decided to pull away, instead, continuing to keep their lips together as they furthered their connection. 

Steven moved his free hand to the side of Connie’s face as a way to better guide his lips against hers. As they kissed the oversized snapback fell from the top of Connie’s head. Connie used the kiss as an excuse to reach her hand to the back of his head, finally a way to run her fingers through the back of his hair. 

Neither of them had experienced anything quite like it and in that moment that was the only place that they could have thought about being. Connie didn’t quite have a care in the world and the sheer sadness that once polluted Steven’s mind had disappeared. All that mattered was them and the...kiss. 

Despite neither of them being experienced kissers, they both did incredibly well in guiding themselves through it. Neither of them knew quite what they were doing, but both of them were incredibly good at pretending that they did. Either way, both of them were having a good time so it didn't quite matter whether or not they were good or not.

They continued to move their lips in such rhythm that they were both convinced that the other person had done it before. Connie couldn’t quite believe how natural Steven was in the subject, his hand sitting so perfectly where it should have been and his lips so soft and coordinated. There was no way that this was Connie’s first time kissing a guy, Steven was practically melting at the touch of both her lips and her fingernails gently scratching against the back of his scalp. 

Neither of them was quite sure how long they had been kissing for, sat in the same position of being somewhat close and still not close enough. 

Connie slowly disconnected her lips, despite feeling Steven’s desperate desire to keep latched on. Connie rested her wrists on Steven’s shoulders, gently twisting a section of hair at the back of his head with her finger. Although they were no longer holding hands, it didn’t quite seem to matter after...that. 

Steven attempted to catch his breath as they sat with their foreheads touching, they didn’t quite have the capacity to open their eyes - still entranced by one another. 

As soon as Steven had regained some of his breath he opened his eyes and lifted his head so that he could have gotten a better view at the beautiful girl before him. He desperately wanted to kiss her again but tried his hardest to resist. It had been her choice to stop, he didn’t want to force it on her. 

“Woah…” Steven whispered as he watched Connie’s lips curl inwards before she tittered with a smile. 

“That was…” 

“Amazing.” 

“Yeah...” 

Connie picked up the snapback that had fallen on the floor and placed it perfectly back onto Steven’s head. He smiled at the gesture, somehow managing to get it to sit just right the first time. 

She was in love with the way that he was looking at her, the way that he had kissed her had been magical. A moment that she would have remembered for the rest of her life. They certainly both enjoyed the moment a lot more than their anxious selves had anticipated. 

“What do you want to do now?” Steven asked, giving full control of the situation to Connie. 

Connie put all her attention on the sunset in the distance, she could have suggested anything as long as it was with him. That was all that she wanted at that moment - to be with Steven. 

“Do you want to watch the sunset together?” Connie suggested, as much as she didn’t entirely mean for the words to come out as romantic, they certainly did. However, that didn’t seem to matter in the slightest to Steven. 

“That would be...nice.” Steven smiled at Connie before readjusting himself enough so that he was still close to her, but was facing Beach City. 

They both sat on the hill staring out at Beach City, the sun setting overhead. It would have been a long time until the sun set completely, but they didn’t want that to ruin their perfect moment. The sky was beautiful regardless. 

Neither of them could have asked to have been anywhere different.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, that happened... :^)
> 
> What do you think? 
> 
> Also, this was totally going to be a slow burn fic, but I got impatient and wanted them to SMOOCH. WHOOPS. 
> 
> Also, totally living for all the 'OH MY GOD THIS IS SO CUTE I'M DYING OH MY GOD I'M DYINGGGG SKSKSKSKS THIS IS SO CUTE OFFFFTTT' comments. Yes, that is a good impression of ALL of you. I love you.


	10. Java Chip Frappe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Let's focus on Steven for a moment...I think he needs some love...

They had sat together on the hill for what seemed like forever, every now and then holding each other’s hand, or at least teasing one another with the idea by brushing their fingers against their hands. 

Neither of them had quite anticipated how their day was going to plan out. When Steven woke up in the morning he certainly hadn’t imagined himself to have been kissing Connie overlooking Beach City in the evening. That was something that nobody could have predicted. 

They had spent quite a lot of time together after they had shared their first kiss. It seemed strange to Steven that after spilling his heart out to Connie about his emotions that she still felt inclined to kiss him. 

Steven was a bit of a...mess. At least, that’s what he thought about himself. 

Although he lived with his aunts and he loved them very much, he couldn’t help but always feel guilt within their presence. He had killed his mother. Well, not directly. It wasn’t on purpose. It wasn’t as if he committed the act personally. 

It wasn’t his fault that his mother had died during childbirth and he was left to be cared for by his father and aunts. It wasn’t his fault that in the early stages of his life his aunts questioned his father’s ability to look after a child. They continued to do so his entire life. 

Steven had spent most of his life growing up in the back of a van. 

He was incredibly close with his dad and it wasn’t as if he held any resentment against him for everything that he had done. His dad loved him to bits and Steven knew that. It just felt as if his dad could have done a much better job of guiding him through life. He would have liked to have gone to school or even go to a doctor’s appointment rather than attending the medical tent at music festivals. 

As much as he loved his dad and his music, he always longed for a life in which none of that occurred. When he was thirteen he finally made his own choice to go and live with his aunts in Beach City. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t already been living in Beach City when his father wasn’t on a tour they lived out the back of the van by the car wash that he owned. His father was so passionate about music that he was willing to give up everything for it, the only thing that came above his guitar and lyrics was his son. 

Although it didn’t seem like Steven came too high on the list, considering he had never even attempted to find somewhere to live that wasn’t the back of the van. Steven had spent his whole life eating meals from a can that had been heated up by a compact gas stove. Sure, he was grateful that he had any food to eat at all, but it just didn't feel like a life someone should have to lead if there was an escape. 

It wasn’t his dad’s fault. He didn’t quite know what he was doing when he found out he was going to be a dad and with Steven’s mother dying, that just made things a lot more complicated. 

Steven’s dad always attempted to give the best kind of life for Steven, but that just wasn’t always possible. His dad knew it was the best option to allow his aunts to take over the process and allowed him to live there permanently. It had taken a long time to come to that conclusion but it was better late than never. 

It wasn’t as if Steven never saw his father, his dad was always around. Even when his dad went on tour, Steven still spoke to him every day whether that was through a video call or text. He had even invited Steven on tour several times and depending on how Steven was feeling when he asked, he occasionally even said yes. 

Steven didn’t particularly like the thrill that came with touring with his dad anymore. Steven liked music and he was pretty good at it, but that didn’t mean that he ever wanted it to be a career. He wasn’t like his dad in that sense...Steven didn’t know what he wanted to do. He didn’t feel as if he really could do anything. 

In his teenage years, along with changes in his hormones, he felt chemical changes within his brain that made him feel worse than he had ever felt before. There were so many times in which he had laid in bed, staring at the ceiling and contemplating what life could have really meant. 

Nothing. It meant nothing. 

Steven would never have amounted to anything. He hadn’t even been to school! What education he did have was whatever his aunt Pearl had taught him about the world and considering she had led a relatively sheltered life, there wasn’t much. Steven wanted to experience the world for himself, not through the eyes of others. 

Having the car gave him the independence he needed to become a better man. To become the person that he wanted to be without the judgement of others. He eventually wanted to move away, not too far that he wouldn’t have been able to see his family, but far enough so he could have lived his own life without their constant interference. 

Why did they have to hound him? Why did they have to look at him the way that they did? 

Steven knew that they had put him in therapy for all of the right reasons. He looked sad and of course, he wanted someone to talk to about it, but it didn’t feel right getting his dad to pay for therapy sessions where he sat and mumbled into the palm of his hand about how bad things were at home. 

Steven felt guilty. His problems were nothing in comparison to some of the threats that people faced every single day. He was insignificant and paying someone to listen to how he felt didn’t feel right at all. 

He was privileged, he had a lovely home to live in and a supportive family. He had no right to be sad. He had no right to complain about anything when there was so much pain and suffering in the world. Nothing revolved around him and he needed to continue to believe that. He was so insignificant in the world that nobody would have noticed if he were to just pack up and leave. 

Steven didn’t want to go to therapy, it just made him feel a million times worse than he did already. He didn’t want to have to whine to a stranger to feel better. It wasn’t even as if the stranger wanted to be there listening to him, they were only there because they were doing their job and Steven’s dad had been paying them money. 

Everything felt so fake. 

On the day in which he had met up with Connie after work, he had driven there as a way of informing his aunts that he had actually gone out for his therapy session. On the phone, he spoke to his aunt Pearl and confirmed that he was going out with some friends before heading back home from therapy. They didn’t need to know exactly where he was at all times.

There was one place where he felt comfortable, although he didn’t have very many friends he did enjoy going to the coffee shop that was situated at the end of the boardwalk. It felt like the only place that he could have gone to be himself and he certainly enjoyed going there a lot more now that a new barista had started for the summer. 

There was something about going into the coffee shop that Steven loved and it wasn’t just about ordering drinks that he barely touched or speaking to both Lars and Sadie. It was mostly about being in the presence of other people. The opportunity to socialise. 

Steven spent a lot of his time helping out down at the car wash when his dad was back in town, that was mostly the extent of work experience he had gathered as well as the socialisation that he experienced from being there. Steven was an incredibly friendly person, it was just a shame that he never quite got to show that to anyone. 

Connie was the first person in a long time where Steven felt as if she actually wanted to speak to him. It didn’t seem as if she was only speaking to him as a way of getting him to stop bothering her. He got that vibe whenever he spoke to Lars. 

Steven was somewhat embarrassed that he had shared so much information with Connie regarding his past. He certainly shouldn’t have told her about his mother, especially not on what seemed to be their second date. Oh, Steven wasn’t sure if they had been on a date or not. He didn’t want to start counting now. 

All he knew was that they had kissed and it had been the most wonderful thing that Steven had experienced. 

They had both found themselves holding hands as they walked back down the hill towards Steven’s car. It was as if they couldn’t help themselves, unable to think back to a time only an hour or so ago when they weren’t so close. 

Steven found it hard to let go of her hand as he made his way to the driver’s seat. Connie didn’t want to head back home, but she knew that she would have to. Her parents were probably already questioning her whereabouts despite texting them several times that she was at the library. She just hoped that her parents would never have been able to catch her out in a lie. 

Connie pulled her seatbelt across her chest as Steven turned the key in the ignition and the car roared into action. She watched carefully as he turned on the radio and turned the volume right down until it was barely audible. As much as he wanted some background ambience, he also wanted to have the ability to speak to Connie without being disturbed. 

They hadn’t exactly spoken much since the kiss, but that wasn’t a bad thing in the slightest. They were both still completely shocked by what had happened. It wasn’t as if the kiss was something that could have been considered bad, but they were certainly far too busy smiling at each other to get their words out. Their minds swimming with different thoughts about their newfound friend. 

“So, what did you think of the view?” Steven questioned as a way of starting up a conversation between them both. 

“Thanks for taking me. It was beautiful.” Connie watched the hill disappear in the distance as they drove away. 

“It sure was.” Steven laughed nervously. Of course it was beautiful, Connie had been there beside him the whole time. As beautiful as the sunset was, Connie beat it. Nothing could have compared to how gorgeous Steven believed that she was. 

Connie gently ran her index finger across her bottom lip. It hadn’t been long ago since Steven’s lips were pressed against hers. It had felt so foreign and yet felt so right. She wished to be there once again, her lips against his on the top of the hill. He certainly wasn’t just a customer in the coffee shop anymore. 

“Can you drop me off at the bus stop?” Connie asked, wanting to give her parents the illusion that she hadn’t been spending her precious study time kissing a boy. 

“How come?” 

“I told my parents I was studying...not…”

“Kissing me?” 

“Yeah.” Connie blushed at his words, she hadn’t quite expected him to be so blunt. 

“Sure, I can do that.” Steven smiled, he was more than willing to accommodate Connie’s request. 

It didn’t take them long to pull up just before reaching the bus stop, Steven didn’t want to get a ticket for parking somewhere that he wasn’t supposed to. As much as he wanted to spend the rest of the evening with Connie, he knew that he would have had to let her get back to reality at some point. 

Once again, Steven pulled up the handbrake and twisted in his seat to get a better look at Connie. He watched her undo her seatbelt and sit forward, taking off the pink varsity jacket that she had been wearing near enough the whole time that they had been together. 

“I really want to keep wearing this, but if my mom sees me in this one more time she’s going to kill me.” Connie groaned, slowly folding the jacket back up and handing it back to Steven.

“Well, you’re free to wear it whenever we’re together. If you’re cold of course.” Steven offered, he loved seeing her in the jacket and didn’t quite want her to take it off. Connie already missed the soft touch of the jacket around her and suddenly felt lost without it. She was getting used to the comfort. 

“That would be...nice.” Connie commented. She would have loved that or at least loved the opportunity to do so. She had decided that she wanted to be as close to the boy as possible and if that meant being able to wear his jacket then she would have accepted. If that meant being able to kiss him more often than not then…

“I really will text you this time. I promise.” Steven admitted, feeling bad that the last time he had mentioned he would text her he didn’t out of the sheer fact that he was nervous. 

“I promise to text back.” Connie confirmed. She wanted to make sure that he knew she was being serious when it came to texting back, she too had been too nervous to do so after attending the music festival with him. Their time together had been so sweet. 

“I’m glad about that.” Steven let out a deep breath that he seemed to have been holding onto. He was worried that Connie wouldn’t have wanted to see him or speak to him after they had shared such an intimate moment. 

Connie knew that she would have to exit the car, a part of her wanting to ask Steven if he could have driven the car around all night so that she could have avoided going home. It wasn’t as if home life was that bad, but being out with Steven seemed like a much more exciting option than going home to study. 

Despite it being the summer soon, she knew she would have to study throughout the summer as a way to make sure she kept up on all of her schoolwork. Getting ahead of classes would have been beneficial considering she was about to start her last year of high school before college became an option. She wanted to keep her options open and by studying she opened up her chances of getting into better colleges. She needed to keep her head in the game. Connie wanted to get early admission into a college and if she kept her head down it was possible she could have been going to college next year. 

“Even if you didn’t want this to be our first date, I thought it was pretty special.” Connie let Steven know as she prepared to exit the vehicle. Steven had previously commented about going out together after work wouldn’t have quite been a first date, it wasn’t going to be as special as where Steven originally wanted to take her. 

Steven thought that somewhere being special meant maybe going to the cinema or taking Connie out for dinner. However, going to one of his favourite places on the earth and making out under the sunset seemed to be pretty special too. Maybe even more special. 

Connie was right - it was special. 

“It went well, right?” Steven practically begged for validation.

“Very well...” Connie began to chew her bottom lip, unsure if that was her new way of flirting. Either way, it seemed to be winning Steven over. 

Actually, anything that Connie did would have won Steven over. 

Steven reached over with confidence and grabbed ahold of Connie’s hand, it seemed as if he didn’t quite feel bad about doing it anymore. It felt normal. It felt as if she had given him permission to do so, meaning that he didn’t feel quite so terrible about trying to flirtatiously touch her hands. 

“I’m sorry I got quite...emotional.” Steven spoke softly, that certainly wasn’t what Connie had expected him to say when he held onto her hands. 

“Oh, Steven - it’s okay!” Connie wanted to reassure Steven as much as possible. It was okay for Steven to have shown them emotions. There was nothing bad about Steven opening up.

“I didn’t want to make you feel uncomfortable. I shouldn’t have shared quite so much.” Steven was quite nervous with his speech. He wanted to avoid the idea that Connie may have thought that he was trying to guilt-trip her into making her kiss him. That wasn’t the case, that just...happened. 

“It doesn’t matter. You can talk to me about anything, I’m not going to judge you.” Connie wanted to make sure that Steven knew that what she was saying was the truth. Of course she wanted Steven to be able to speak to her about everything. That was what true friends were for. 

Steven glanced away, despite Connie’s kind words he still felt guilty about what it seemed as if he had done. He wondered what Connie thought of him. It wasn’t as if he wanted to make her feel uncomfortable, that was entirely the opposite of what he wanted. 

“Thanks.” Steven mumbled as he gently stroked the top of Connie’s hand with his thumb. 

Connie was melting at the touch, but she couldn’t let him see what he did to her. She hadn’t felt like that about a boy before and was still kind of unsure about what she felt and whether or not she could have labelled it with a feeling. It was too soon for something like that. She was just too unsure. 

“I should really get going.” Connie awkwardly looked to the side, not wanting Steven to feel as if he had said something that wanted her to exit sooner. This time it wasn’t about him, it was more about her parents sending out a search party if she was even a minute later than what she had previously told them. 

“Right. Yeah.” Steven let go of her hand. 

“I’ll text you once I’m home.” Connie confirmed, making sure that he knew she wasn’t going to just leave everything there. Their relationship together wasn’t over and it seemed as if Steven needed that reassurance that she wasn’t just going to get out of the car and disappear into thin air. 

“Yep. I’ll text you back.” Steven smiled directly at the girl in his passenger seat, once again entranced by her eyes that looked back at him with such beauty. 

They couldn’t keep their eyes off each other and it certainly seemed as if they couldn’t keep their lips apart either. Connie placed her hand on the door handle of the car, preparing her exit. Just before she managed to open the door she leant over the handbrake and gear stick to kiss Steven once more. 

Steven closed his eyes, allowing himself to be taken away by the kiss. This time, it had ended far too quickly for his liking. As much as he wanted to kiss the girl more than once he knew that he couldn’t keep her waiting. Their lips connected for a split second before disconnecting slowly. 

They both pulled away, remaining a close distance as they opened their eyes. They were once again overwhelmed by the feeling that came with kissing one another. The feeling so intense that neither of them could quite put their finger on how it felt. It was wonderful. 

They both exchanged polite smiles. 

“I’ll see you soon.” Connie practically purred, unable to control herself around the boy. She opened the car door and exited, throwing her bag over her shoulder in the process leaving Steven completely and utterly speechless. 

“Bye.” Steven whispered to himself as he watched her walk down the street, she turned back to wave and he made sure to wave back. 

Steven bought his fingers to his lips, dumbfounded by the evening he had just had. 

He had kissed Connie. 

Connie had kissed him! 

Steven was suddenly brought out of his trance as his phone buzzed, he reached into his pocket to grab it half expecting it to be Pearl asking where he was again. Instead, he opened up his phone and saw a message from Connie. 

‘I’m home :^)’ 

Steven smiled down at the message and brought his phone to his chest. He took a deep breath inwards and looked up, his heart completely and utterly full of love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The response from this has truly been INSANE. I refresh the page every hour and 9/10 times I'll have a new comment. It's so lovely to see and I'm incredibly overwhelmed by it all. You're all so amazing! 
> 
> WHICH IS WHY I'VE SET UP A DISCORD SERVER FOR IF YOU WANT TO COME AND CHAT WITH ME/OTHERS ABOUT SU FANFICTIONS!!!!
> 
> I thought it would be nice for writers to exchange tips, share stories and for readers to do the same. Come hang out! I have no idea how to run a Discord server, but feel free to join and teach me. Link below!
> 
> https://discord.gg/nCBC3tF


	11. Americano

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lars invites Sadie and Connie to a party. 
> 
> Greg returns home and Steven has a lot to tell him about.

“It’s going to be awesome! You have to come!” Lars leant on the counter as Sadie tidied the paper cups, of course, Lars was going on about something trivial that she had only been half-listening to the whole conversation. 

“What is it again?” Sadie questioned, glancing up to Lars as he continued to gloat. 

“It’s Buck Dewey’s twenty-first birthday party! His dad is out of town on some trip and he’s got the house all to himself. I heard he has a pool!” Lars explained.

“They invited you?” 

“Yeah...well...it’s more of an open invite kind of thing. A party so loud that the cops that show up to arrest us will want to party with us! You’ve got to come with me, it’ll be loads of fun!” Lars threw his hands out in front of him to express his excitement. 

Connie stood in the background, listening in on the conversation as she made a customer their drink. She sometimes found it hard to concentrate on the task at hand when Lars and Sadie were always in the background of everything either arguing or talking about something completely obscene. 

“Parties aren’t really my thing, Lars.” 

“You’ll have loads of fun, besides, I’ll be there too! It's in a few weeks.” Lars attempted to calm Sadies nerves about the idea of going to a party together. Lars would have loved if Sadie could have tagged along with him.

“I don’t know...I don’t know Buck Dewey. Wouldn’t it be weird for me to go to his party?” Sadie felt uncomfortable with the idea. 

“It’s a house party, it wouldn’t be a successful house party if the host knew everyone that was there. It’s all about trying to get the party as big as possible. It’s all over social media.” Lars pulled out his phone before tapping his thumbs against the screen and turning the device around to show Sadie. 

There on the screen was a social media page with a time, date and address to the party. They certainly seemed to have been hiding it in plain sight. 

“I’ll think about it.” 

“Please, Sadie! I bet Connie would go!” Lars insisted before bringing Connie into the conversation. 

Connie had just handed over the cup of coffee to the customer before hearing her name. 

“I don’t know what you two are talking about, but I don’t want to be involved.” Connie sighed, she had heard something about a party, but that was as far as her knowledge went. She didn’t really want to know much else about it. 

“It’s a house party at Buck Dewey’s place!” Lars explained once more, showing the open invite to Connie as he turned his phone around. 

“The Mayor’s son?” Connie questioned, she wasn’t quite clued up on everyone in town but she had heard Lars mention him once before. 

“Exactly.” Lars stated before looking down at his phone and pressing his fingers against the screen. “Hey, maybe you should come, I’m currently in the process of trying to get Sadie to come and we could totally see if Steven wants to go too.” 

“I’m not going.” Sadie mumbled under her breath, Lars quite clearly attempting to have a conversation without her involved. 

“Yeah, no, that doesn’t sound like my kind of thing.” Connie admitted, going to the music festival was one thing, but going to a house party? Connie needed to slow down with all of these functions. 

Connie had finally broken up for the summer meaning that she was free to do whatever she pleased without being constantly plagued with studying. This didn’t, however, mean that she would have stopped studying altogether, it just meant that she had a lot more time for work and other activities. Mostly activities involving Steven. 

It had been just over a week since Steven had kissed her and she had kissed back rather passionately. They had been exchanging texts all week whenever they had a spare moment, mostly speaking about whatever came to mind. They had seen each other in person twice within the week, once when Steven had come in for a quick coffee and another time just for them to walk down the boardwalk together on Connie’s break. During neither of the times that they hung out had they had kissed again, much to both of their upset. 

It didn’t feel quite right just yet to start shouting to the public that they had been kissing. That they had been together. 

“Well, it’s not for a few weeks so you don’t have to worry. You still have time to think about whether or not you want to be cool or boring your whole life.” Lars folded over his arms and tutted. 

“Well, that means you’ve still got time to figure out how to be cool.” Connie fought back, slowly realising over her weeks of working in the coffee shop the only way to stand up to Lars was to fight him back. 

“I like this one, she’s feisty.” Sadie commented as she pointed back at Connie. 

“This is such a hostile work environment with you both in here. You’re always bullying me! HR is going to hear about this.” Lars threatened somewhat jokingly, half of him being deadly serious. 

It was true, Sadie and Connie made quite the team when it came to ganging up against Lars. It wasn’t as if he couldn’t take it, but Sadie certainly enjoyed being able to fight back with twice the power. Connie had just enough wit to strike back at any given moment. 

"Aw boohoo, Lars. Now can you move so I can get to the cups?" Sadie jeered before attempting to push Lars out of the way. 

"Fine." Lars sighed as he moved away from the counter, revealing the stacks of cups underneath the counter. 

Sadie leant down and began to sort them out, Lars once again standing off to the side and doing no work. Connie didn't want to intrude on their arguments, it wasn't something she ever really wanted to get involved in. 

Connie had felt someone deflated the past week, thinking that maybe after the kiss she would have felt ecstatic, but instead, she felt empty. It wasn't because of Steven. Steven hadn't done anything wrong and she had loved spending her time this week exchanging silly texts with him. She was more worried about her school work and how now the summer was here what she would need to do to get ahead. Her parents had been on her case all week. 

Although she hadn’t seen him much, every moment she did spend with him had been rather exciting. It seemed that within his presence her heart rate shot up and her hands got incredibly warm and sweaty. She hoped that whenever she did end up holding Steven’s hand that he didn’t quite notice how clammy her hands were. 

As the summer started, as did the rush within the coffee shop. They had already started to notice an influx of customers coming through the door. A lot of them being people that they had never seen before - more than likely being tourists in the area. It seemed the rest of Beach City was starting to get busier, including the arcade, theme park and the restaurants down the boardwalk. 

Steven hadn’t spoken to Connie about what he did during the day. Connie didn’t quite know much about him other than the fact that he enjoyed drinking sickly coffees and was really quite good at kissing. 

Steven had been pre-occupied during the week. Not only was his mind swimming with the memory of Connie kissing him, but he also had his mind focused on his own family. Most importantly - his dad. 

Greg Universe had returned home from his most recent tour, it was time for him to re-open the car wash for the peak season. It wasn’t as if the car wash made a huge amount of money, but it gave Greg something to help build his funds between tours. Being a touring musician was pretty expensive and most of his income and outcomes occurred on the same day. 

Greg could have sold the carwash, but he loved owning the business and occasionally got people to look after it when he was away from prolonged periods of time. Steven often helped out. 

Steven had missed his dad whilst he had been away. Staying with his aunts was fine, but he had a special connection with his dad that couldn’t quite have been broken by anyone. Despite sharing very different outlooks on life when it came to what they wanted for the future, they both strived for the happiness that they sought. 

Steven sat in the back of his dad’s van with the back doors open, he had been joining his dad at work since his return. It was something to do that didn’t include being stuck at home or driving around aimlessly burning fuel. Being at the carwash made him feel somewhat useful, well, at least when there were customers to attend to. 

Steven sat with his back against the inside of the van, his posture was poor as he was practically lying on his back with his legs nearly tucked to his face. Just like any teenager of the modern-day, he was sat with his phone half an inch away from his face, the snapback pulled further down his face as usual. 

“I’ve never seen you look at that phone so intensely before, Stu-ball. You’ll get sucked in if you get any closer!” Greg commented as he walked over to the back of the van only to see his son sat in what looked to be one of the most uncomfortable positions in existence. 

“That only happens in movies.” Steven mumbled, continuing to scroll through the phone with a single finger. 

“Well, I guess you’re right - but you never know.” Greg chuckled, slightly concerned about his son’s behaviour. It wasn’t like Steven to be glued to his phone. 

Little did Greg know that the reasoning behind his son’s strange behaviour was a girl by the name of Connie Mahaeswaran that Steven had become interested in beyond belief. Steven sat in the back of the van scrolling back and forth up their long string of messages together. Connie was at work, so he knew that she wouldn’t have been able to text back, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t look back on what they had previously spoken about. 

Steven knew that he could have gone over to the coffee shop at any time to see Connie, but that wasn’t right. He shouldn’t hound her. He didn’t want to seem desperate and obsessed, that would have been creepy. 

Greg sat down on the opposite side of the van dressed in his casual attire of a white t-shirt, cut jean shorts and flip flops. He tapped his kneecaps, feeling slightly awkward around his son. It wasn’t as if he had seen his son in a few weeks, all he wanted to do was to spend some time with him - even if it was spending some time working at the carwash together. 

“So, what have you been up to whilst I was gone this time? Got any new and exciting hobbies?” Greg questioned, trying his hardest to connect with his son. 

“Not really. It’s the exact same as when you last left. You missed Beach-a-palooza though, it was really fun.” Steven practically mumbled under his breath, his tone changing dramatically. 

“Steven, I’m sorry. You know I had a show that night.” Greg attempted to apologise. It seemed as if he had already apologised more than once for the error that he had made. He never intended to book a show the same night as Beach-a-palooza - the one night a year he always tried to be in town for his son. It was an event that they had attended together since Steven was a kid. 

Steven locked his phone and sat up beside his father, gently placing his phone in his pocket. 

“It’s okay, dad. I said it was really fun.” Steven kicked his legs back and forth as he spoke. He wanted to tell his dad about Connie, he had managed to keep it a secret from him this whole time. Even his aunts didn’t quite know what was going on with Steven as of late. 

“Did you go with some friends?” Greg wanted to know more about Steven’s time at the event without him. It was the first year in which Greg hadn’t attended with him. 

In a way, Steven was kind of happy that Greg had not been able to go with him. It wasn’t the fact that he didn’t want to go with his dad, but if his dad was already planning to attend then he would never have been able to invite Connie out with him. 

“I went with a girl.” Steven admitted.

“A girl? A girl girl. A girl you like?” Greg’s eyes widened, he had never heard Steven talk about the subject before. Greg often told Steven stories about how he fell for his mother, but nothing had ever come from Steven himself on the subject. 

“Well...a little...yeah.” 

A lot. It was a lot. He liked her a lot! 

“Steven! That’s amazing, my son - a ladies man.” Greg laughed as he pushed Steven gently in the shoulder. Steven chuckled, embarrassed by his father’s words. 

“Dad!” Steven groaned with a smile. 

“So, what is she like?” Greg wanted to show his interest in Steven’s life. Greg always felt guilty about leaving Steven to his own devices when he went away, it was nice to try and catch up with him whenever possible. 

Of course, they always spoke on the phone and video called each other frequently. Nothing compared to being able to see his son in person. 

“She’s...her name is Connie. She’s really smart, she studies a lot! I met her at the coffee shop.” Steven pushed his index fingers together as he spoke, feeling nervous about telling his dad about the girl that he liked. 

“The coffee shop on the boardwalk?” Greg asked as if there was another coffee shop in Beach City. 

“Yeah, she works there.” 

“Well, isn’t that something. I can’t believe you have a crush! Y’know, if you feel the same way I felt when I first saw your mother then you’ve got yourself a keeper.” Greg smiled over at Steven. 

“We’ve been on a few dates now. Well, I don’t know if I’d call them dates. We’ve kissed though. It’s complicated.” Steven scratched the back of his neck awkwardly, he didn’t mind sharing with his dad. 

“You little monster. Kissing?!” Greg pulled his son in for half a hug, throwing his arm around him before scruffing the top of his head, the cap getting in the way of messing up his hair. 

Steven pulled away from his father, readjusting his cap as he blushed. 

“A little bit.” Steven blushed. 

“A little bit? What’s that supposed to mean?” Greg couldn’t help but grin.

“We kissed a few times - okay? Can we stop talking about this now?” Steven snapped slightly, knowing what was probably coming. 

“A few times? Steven...you remember our conversation abo-”

“Yes!” Steven was quick to confirm. 

“I’m only looking out for you. You need to make sure you use pr-”

“Dad, it’s fine!” 

“It’s very important that you ask for co-”

“I know! Please stop...” Steven buried his head into his hands. 

“Steven, this is a serious topic. If you start to become sexually act-”

Steven hopped off the edge of the van and put his arms out either side of him and closed his eyes. There was no way that he wanted to be a part of that conversation. 

“Nope! That’s it. I’m fine. We should probably start reorganising the air fresheners by how strong their scent is. Doesn’t that sound like a good idea?” Steven spoke quickly, trying to find anything on earth to speak about which wasn’t his newfound sex life. Which, by the way, did not exist yet! 

His dad was getting the wrong idea. 

“Sorry, I’m just being an overprotective parent. It’s pretty embarrassing stuff, but I trust you. Just make sure to be safe - it sounds like she’s really special to you.” Greg smiled, noticing that the conversation he had forced his son into was one that made him uncomfortable. Greg was only looking out for him. 

Steven sighed deeply and stared down at his feet before turning back around to face his dad. Greg sat on the back of the van smiling up at his son with reassurance. 

“I...I really like her, dad.” Steven smirked shyly, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly as he thought about the girl he had become infatuated with. 

“Yeah?”

“I think she likes me too.” 

“Who could resist you? You’ve got Universe genes!” Greg flexed his bicep, showing what could have been considered a muscle. 

“Dad!”

“What? You’re a handsome young man! I’m so proud of how much you’ve grown over these years.” Greg nearly shed a tear as he spoke, he truly was proud of his son. 

Steven smiled up at his dad, despite everything that had gone on within his mind over the past couple of years, his dad had always been there to support him. Sometimes Steven didn’t give his dad enough credit and he always felt bad about it. No matter what, his dad always tried and that was what was the most important thing. 

“Thanks, Dad.” 

“Now, come and tell me more about you and Connie.” Greg tapped his hand against the inside of the van, gesturing for Steven to sit beside him. Steven grinned happily, he was more than excited to tell his dad more about the girl that he liked. He had been keeping it from his aunts as much as possible, it was nice to finally be able to tell someone about what he had been experiencing. 

Besides, his dad always seemed to have good life advice for him. Perhaps Greg could have told Steven about the complex feelings he was experiencing about Connie? Would he have been able to understand them? 

His dad had been in love before. 

Was Steven in love? 

He certainly felt something that he hadn’t felt before. There was no way of knowing his true feelings. 

Although, everything seemed to point towards that direction. Everything. 

Steven sat down beside Greg and began to talk about everything he and Connie did together, everything that they had been speaking about and most importantly - how she made him feel. It sounded as if by the end of the conversation that Steven had come to a conclusion. 

He was in love with Connie Mahaeswaran.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh boy, I think he likes her. He LIKE LIKES HER. 
> 
> What do you think Steven should do?
> 
> Come chat with me in the Discord server about this chapter or...literally anything else! Come make some friends - https://discord.gg/nCBC3tF


	12. Cortado

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lars gives Steven some love advice which only serves to confuse him further. 
> 
> Connie has a question to ask Steven which she didn't quite expect him to be on board with.

“Two jelly donuts please, Lars!” Steven leant on the counter in front of the cash register. 

“Is that it?” Lars sighed, completely unimpressed by Steven’s pep. 

“That is all.” 

“Good, because I wouldn’t have made you one of them horrible drinks even if you asked nicely.” Lars grumbled, grabbing a small bag and tongs to take the donuts out of the display. 

“I haven’t asked for syrup shots in weeks. Connie makes me this drink, I have no idea what it is - but I like it.” Steven explained, referring to the chai tea latte that Connie made him whenever he came in. 

“The chai tea latte?” Lars questioned, somehow remembering what it was that Connie had made him previously. It wasn’t as if he paid too much attention to it, but he had heard them speaking about it. 

“Maybe. I think so.” Steven spoke in an uncertain tone whilst tapping his card against the chip and pin device. 

“Here.” Lars passed over the small bag containing two donuts, just as Steven had requested. 

“Thanks Lars - I’ll see you soon!” Steven grabbed the bag off the counter and went to walk away. 

“Wait!”

“What?”

“Don’t you want to use the back door?” Lars questioned. Steven gave him a perplexed expression. 

“Uh…”

“I know you’re going to see Connie. It’ll save you walking around - but don’t get used to it.” Lars stepped over to the side of the counter, opening up the side and granting access for Steven. 

Steven stepped around the counter, going behind into the area in which only staff members were allowed. It was quite obvious that Steven was only there to see Connie, but he wanted to get something nice for both of them to share. Steven had no idea if Connie liked donuts or not, but he wanted to try and do something nice for her. 

“Woah, is this where coffee comes from?” Steven held the bag of donuts with both hands as he stepped behind the counter and looked around at where the coffee was prepared. It was strange to have been a customer in the closed-off area. He felt privileged. 

“I’m not even going to answer that. It’s through there.” Lars opened up the back door, pointing to the second door on the opposite side of the stock room. 

“Thanks Lars.” 

“Don’t mention it. Really - don’t.” Lars scowled down at Steven. 

Steven glanced at the back door before staring back up at Lars. Lars felt somewhat uncomfortable as Steven’s eyes began to burn into him. What did he want from him? 

“Lars…”

“What?” 

“How do you know if you’re in love with someone?” Steven looked up at Lars for as much guidance as possible. 

Lars’ eyes widened at the question as he looked down at Steven in confusion. Why was he asking him this? 

“Um...I don’t know, man. You just get that warm fluffy feeling inside.” Lars furrowed his eyebrows, struggling to find the words he wanted to say. 

“Fluffy?” Steven touched his chest. 

“Yeah, heavy heart, sweaty palms, you look at them for a little too long, you think about them a lot - the usual. Have you never seen a teen movie?” Lars folded over his arms, practically towering over Steven. 

“Oh.” Steven bit down on his bottom lip, realising that everything that Lars was describing were things that he felt for Connie. 

Sure, he had already established that maybe it was love. He loved the word love - but did Connie? That was another question to have been asked. Eventually. 

A part of him was excited for it to have been true whereas the other half of himself was aching at the thought. Was it too soon? Was it possible to fall in love that quickly? Sure. Was it sensible? 

No. 

“You love her - don’t you?” Lars cocked an eyebrow at the teenager. 

“Um…” Steven ran his fingers across the top of the paper bag he was holding. 

“Dude, that’s fast - even for you. Don’t tell her that, you’ll freak her out.” Lars gripped onto Steven’s shoulders. 

“I don’t want to freak her out.” 

“So don’t tell her. You’ve got to suck it up. Girls hate it when you say them three words too fast, they find it creepy and weird.” Lars attempted to give Steven some solid advice. Well, as much advice as someone like Lars could give him. 

“When can I tell her?” 

“It’s love suicide to tell her now, man. Take her out for dinner or something. At least kiss each other first.” Lars explained. 

“We have kissed.” 

“What? When?” 

“Last week.” 

“Really? Woah.” 

“Was that wrong? Did I do something wrong?” Steven panicked, only wanting to do what was best. 

“No, just...well done. That’s awesome.” Lars took a step back and placed his hands on his hips. He was pretty proud of Steven. It seemed as if Steven was getting more attention from women than Lars had gotten his entire life. 

Lars didn’t want to admit he was jealous, but it was hard to keep it in. Why was it that someone as unskillful as Steven managed to fall in love and actually have someone like him back? It was pretty unfair. 

“Really?” 

“Don’t mess it up.” Lars scowled, as much as he was jealous of Steven it wasn’t as if he wasn’t proud of him. 

“Huh?” Steven was shocked at Lars’ sudden change of expression. 

“Go and give her a donut” Lars turned Steven by the shoulders and pushed him in the back. Lars paused for a moment. “Can I rephrase that? Ugh, I hate this.” 

Steven stumbled slightly before staring at the exit. He gulped as a response to his anxiety, holding the small paper bag tightly to his chest. All he wanted to do was to hang out with Connie on her break and Lars had suddenly made it a lot more difficult. 

He couldn’t tell her how he felt. No. 

It was too soon. Lars had said that it was too soon, they had only known each other for a couple of weeks. He was right about it freaking her out. Maybe they could have just kissed a few more times - wouldn’t that have been nice. 

They hadn’t even hugged each other. Steven loved hugs and yet he was yet to get that close to the girl that he claimed to be in love with. The girl that he was incredibly interested in. He liked her and he wanted her to know. 

Maybe she already knew? Well, she quite clearly knew that he was interested in her else he wouldn’t have kissed her. 

Oh, love was too complicated for Steven. He just didn’t understand why he couldn’t express his feelings, it seemed as if everyone around him was trying to prevent him from doing so. Even his own mind was against him. 

Perhaps it was a bad idea to tell her? It certainly felt as if it was too soon and there hadn’t quite been a right moment. 

There was a right moment, but in that same moment, he also found his tongue inside her mouth. 

Hmm. Nope. There wasn’t quite a defining line to say when it was socially acceptable to say those three words. Was it love? Was he allowed to call it love? Why was there not a handbook on this kind of thing? Maybe with enough research and experience he could have written it himself. 

‘How to Tell a Girl You Love Her Without Freaking Her Out Because You’ve Only Been on Two Dates. Were They Dates? I’m Not Sure.’ by Steven Universe. 

“Steven!” A voice practically cheered as the door shut behind Steven. He didn’t quite remember stepping outside, it must have been between the time of speaking to Lars and having his internalised anxiety engulf him. 

Connie was sitting outside of the coffee shop with her back against the wall. It was usually where she spent most of her breaks when at work. It was quiet enough around the back of the building to not be disturbed by anyone passing by. It was nice in a way, other than the dumpster that housed old coffee cups, napkins and out of date pastries. Connie tried not to think about the fact there wasn’t a dumpster too far away from where she was eating lunch - it was just something she had gotten used to. 

“Hey, Connie! How are you?” Steven began the conversation with some small talk. 

“Not too bad, just looking at funny videos. I sent you the one with the guy who was roller skating, right?” Connie looked up at Steven, her tone and conversation so casual - as if they had been friends for years and certainly hadn’t made out the week before. 

“Yeah! It was really funny. I showed my aunt Amethyst and we couldn’t stop laughing.” Steven chuckled softly, recalling his memory from the previous night in which Connie had sent him a funny video. 

Steven sat himself down beside Connie, a little closer than someone would sit if they were just friends. He crossed his legs and placed the paper bag in front of him before putting his hands on his knees and tapping anxiously. 

“What have you got? Anything good?” Connie questioned as she looked over towards Steven’s mysterious paper bag. It was branded with the Beach City Coffee logo, so Connie knew it could have only been one of the very few items they had in the shop. 

“I got us donuts. You like strawberries, right?” Steven gave Connie an uneasy look, anxiously awaiting her answer. 

“Yeah, of course! Who doesn’t like strawberries?”

“A strawberry hating maniac - that’s who.” Steven made a silly voice making Connie instantly giggle at his comment. 

“Well, that’s not me. So, I think I’ll have to take them both.” Connie snatched the paper bag from in front of Steven, causing him to gasp in shock. 

Connie had gotten a lot more confident around Steven after spending so long speaking to him on text. Getting to know Steven had been fantastic and she was entirely grateful for everything that he had done for her. He truly was sweet. 

Connie, however, did enjoy teasing the poor boy. It seemed as if her first-class wit came in handy when it came to Steven. Steven couldn’t say he didn’t love it, he just assumed it was a way of her showing that she too could flirt. 

“Hey!” Steven reached over as Connie tried her hardest to put her arm out as far away as possible from him. By no means was she going to allow him to take the donuts back from her. 

“Y’know, you didn’t have to buy these.” 

“What?”

“I work there, Steven. I could have just gotten the stale ones from the day before.” 

“Well, maybe I wanted to treat you to some fancy fresh donuts.” Steven pouted, it seemed as if in his attempt to get back the small bag of donuts he had touched Connie’s arms and leant on her more within that short space of time than what they had done in the span of time that they had known each other. 

“You’ve seen the storeroom, right? You can’t use fresh to describe them. Just...lots of corn syrup and preservatives.” Connie cocked her eyebrow, still keeping the bag on the opposite side of her away from Steven. 

“They still taste good! C’mon!” Steven took another grab at the donuts, once again being unsuccessful, but still leaning on Connie enough to make her laugh. 

Once again, they were so close. It was as if they couldn’t quite get enough of being together. Sure, they had walked up and down the boardwalk together and Steven had seen her when she was on her break - but there was nothing like this. There was a desperate need to be close, the need to make sure that they were touching each other somehow. 

“Okay, maybe I’ll let them go this time. Next time I won’t back down.” Connie smirked back at Steven, both sitting back up as Connie passed the bag back over to Steven. 

“You’re lucky I’m nice, else I wouldn’t offer you one of these delicious donuts.” Steven stuck his nose up as he opened the top of the bag and offered one to Connie. 

Connie couldn’t help but laugh as she reached into the bag and grabbed the sugary donut between her fingers, Steven followed suit. They sat in a different kind of comforting silence as they ate beside one another, it certainly wasn’t the dinner date that Steven always had within his mind - but it sure was something. 

“So, Lars mentioned a party that’s happening soon. Some guy called Buck Dewey? Do you know him?” Connie struck up a conversation between bites of the sugary mess. 

“Not well, but I know who he is.” Steven shrugged. 

“Are you going?”

“Where?”

“To the party.” 

“No. Are you?”

“No, parties aren’t really my thing.” Connie admitted, despite never really having attended one herself. 

“Dancing wasn’t your thing either, but you were pretty good at that.” Steven grinned smugly. 

“Hey, I thought you said you weren’t watching!” 

“I wasn’t! I just...it felt nice to dance with you, I mean, it seemed you knew what you were doing.” Steven was quick to correct himself, despite Connie already taking in his words. 

“It seemed pretty easy.” Connie rubbed her arm having finished the donut mid-conversation. 

“Going to a party is probably the same. Do you want to go?” Steven questioned. 

It wasn’t like Steven to conform to things like parties. Of course, he certainly enjoyed the idea of them. The only problem was that he also hadn’t been to many that didn’t involve party balloons and banners. The likelihood was that the kind of party they were referring to wasn’t exactly the kind of party where you would have seen balloons or banners. There would also probably be a lack of presents. 

Connie was unsure of his question. Had he just asked if she wanted to go to some kind of house party with him? From what she knew about him, it also didn’t quite seem like the kind of thing that he would have been interested in either. It had surprised her when he had asked. 

The truth was - Steven didn’t want to go to the party. It certainly didn’t sound like something that he wanted to partake in. However, it would have been strange for Connie to have brought it up without actually wanting to go herself. Why would she have brought it up otherwise? 

“Steven, we’re minors. I’m pretty sure there will be alcohol there.” Connie was somewhat anxious about his suggestion.

“We don’t have to drink it. It’ll be fun though - right? We could go together?” Steven smiled over at Connie, leaning his head back against the wall. He was so cute. 

Connie wasn’t too keen on the idea of going to the party, but it seemed as if Steven already had it all figured out. How hard would it have been if they were to have gone together? There was nothing stopping them from having fun. Connie would have to think of some kind of lie to feed her parents, but other than that she would have fun. Anything revolving around Steven was usually fun and exciting. 

“You really want to go to this party?” 

“Well, only if you’ll come with me.” Steven smiled, shrugging his shoulders slightly as he spoke. 

He continued to lean his head against the wall, looking at Connie directly with a loving gaze. Lars was right about one thing, he did certainly find himself looking at Connie more often than not. He couldn’t keep his eyes off her.

Connie groaned, unable to resist his charm. She knew it was just destiny for her to have to go to the party. 

“As long as you stay with me all night. I won’t know anyone there.” Connie’s expression dropped, she didn’t want to be left alone at the party. 

“I can do that.” Steven could have easily done that. Spending time with Connie? That seemed to be one of the easiest requests that Steven had ever gotten. No sweat. 

Connie leant her head against the wall to match Steven’s position. It seemed as if they just loved being inside of the moment as they stared into each other’s eyes. They were starting to get used to the gaze that didn’t seem to let off. They wanted to hold it for longer, but it was incredibly difficult to do so when the surrounding world demanded so much from them instead. 

Steven’s heart began to race just looking at her, thinking about all of the sweet moments that they had shared together since they had met. He desperately wanted to tell her how he felt, but he couldn’t. It was impossible. He couldn’t do it. 

Despite not being able to speak the words - he could show it. Steven wanted to keep showing Connie how much she meant to him. He didn’t want her to feel like a phase or make her feel as if she was just the barista at his favourite coffee shop. Steven wanted to make her feel special because to him - she was. 

Steven reached up towards Connie’s face, gently brushing a loose section of her hair back behind her ear. Connie blushed at the action, the touch of his fingers brushing against her cheek driving her crazy. 

Connie desperately wanted to kiss him but found no way in her mind to bring out that kind of confidence. They hadn’t kissed since he had said goodbye to her in his car little over a week ago. She wanted to feel his lips against hers again, a feeling that she had been attempting to saviour and one that she kept being reminded of. 

Connie wanted to touch him somehow, a way of displaying her own affection without having to reconnect their lips. As much as she wanted to play with his hair once more, the snapback blocked all opportunities of doing so. Instead, she settled on readjusting the collar of his pink varsity jacket that he had finally readopted as his own after the vast amount of times that Connie had taken it for herself. 

Steven glanced down at his collar and watched Connie move it around. It didn’t do much other than neatening it up against his hoodie, but the care in her touch was soothing. 

“Do you have to dress up for house parties?” Connie questioned, unsure of the usual dress code. 

“I don’t think so.” Steven tilted his head against the wall again before reaching up once more to play with Connie’s hair. He had never seen anyone so beautiful in his entire life. 

“Good.” 

Connie reached up to grab a hold of the top of Steven’s hand that was currently in the process of tucking more hair behind her ear. He stopped his action as soon as he felt Connie’s touch. 

Connie flattened her hand across the top of his, subtly suggesting for him to also follow the action. Steven moved the position of his hand, putting it flat against Connie’s face. Steven gently cupped the side of Connie’s face feeling closer to her as ever as he felt her breath on his hand. 

Suddenly, Connie’s phone began to ring violently causing her to jump. She fumbled around for her phone as Steven removed his hand and placed it back on his lap. 

“That’s my alarm to say my break is over. I’m going to have to go now.” Connie looked down at her phone, sliding her finger across the screen to disable the alarm. 

“Oh.” 

“Thanks for the donut though.” Connie smiled, preparing to get up and walk back into work. She felt mentally refreshed to continue serving customers after spending some time with Steven. He always made her feel better. 

“No problem.” Steven grinned, just happy to have been close with Connie once again. 

He watched as she stood herself up, Steven was close behind as he also managed to find himself to his feet. 

“Well, I’ll see you soon?” Connie asked. 

“Always.” Steven smiled before making his move. 

Steven opened his arms, wanting nothing more than for Connie to fall into them. As much as he was dreading the rejection, Connie did, in fact, wrap her arms back around him. 

Despite doing what some may have considered backwards, they had just shared their first hug together. One that was sweet, warm and full of love. 

Connie noticed that Steven was a good hugger, she rested her head against his shoulder and held on tightly. He was like a teddy bear, soft, warm and comforting. He smelt like the aftershave that had plagued her nostrils for an entire evening. 

Steven held them together for a little longer than a standard hug, it seemed as if neither of them wanted to let go. It seemed as if whenever they did get close to one another that getting any further apart would have been considered a crime. The closer they were the better it was. 

“Bye.” Connie spoke softly as she detached from the hug, they slowly departed from each other’s grip. 

Steven couldn’t quite find the words to say as he waved back at her, smiling as she opened up the back door and disappeared back into the building that housed coffee and customers. Steven was once considered a customer, now seen as someone who managed to win his way into Connie’s heart. 

Connie stepped into the back room, washed her hands and put her apron back on before rejoining Lars behind the counter. 

Lars desperately wanted to make a comment to Connie about her newfound relationship with the strange teenager who he had known for the better part of half his life but found no words that wouldn’t have been either too cheesy or offensive. 

He decided to keep quiet. It was probably for the best. 

Lars leant on the counter, continuing to stare down at his phone as Connie rejoined him. His face dropped as he read something before his expression changed dramatically. 

“They’ve moved Buck’s party to this weekend. Apparently his dad’s business trip moved forward. Are you still not coming?” Lars gasped as he found out the news, social media littered with the information. 

Connie stopped in her tracks. This weekend? That didn’t quite give her enough time to mentally prepare. A party was a big thing and if Steven wanted to go she would have, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t going to be incredibly nervous about it the whole time. 

“I think I’m going to go with Steven.” 

“Steven? You’re both coming?” Lars’ expression quickly turned to a grin. He didn’t quite expect it from either of them. They both seemed as if they were the introverted type, not the party type. Lars was excited for it though. 

“It seemed like Steven wanted to go, so we’re going to go together.” 

“Like a date?” 

“I mean...probably not.” 

“That’s totally a date.” Lars rolled his eyes, knowing that Steven would beat around the question and Connie certainly wasn’t going to admit it. 

“It’s someone else’s party.” 

“Yeah, but you’re going together. He wants to be with you, duh.” Lars threw his phone back into his pocket as he glanced around the coffee shop for any more customers approaching. It seemed as if everyone already had their drinks and was sitting down adding to the quiet ambience of chattering. 

Lars was right, of course Steven wanted to be with Connie. It wasn’t as if he even wanted to go to the party, but if Connie was going to be there and they could have gone together then there was no stopping them. They were going to go together and it was going to be fun. Neither of them had attended a teenage function before. 

“I want to be with him too.” Connie glanced off to one side, out of everyone, she certainly didn’t expect to be admitting that to Lars. 

“Well then go together then. Jeez, I thought you were the smart one.” Lars rolled his eyes before walking over to the cash register to serve a customer who had just walked through the door. 

Connie stared down at the floor, going to a party together wouldn’t have been too hard. It would have been fine! After all, she would have been with Steven and she wouldn’t have to think about what anyone else would think about her. It wasn’t worth it. 

She knew if there was ever a point in the party where she started to feel uncomfortable that Steven would have taken her back home. 

There was nothing to worry about. 

Everything was going to be just fine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Everyone's still interested in this drivel, right? It's about to get a little more interesting...
> 
> Ha. Ha. 
> 
> Oh boy...


	13. Cold Brew

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven and Connie attend Buck Dewey's house party where they get dragged into an overly competitive game of beer pong. They make a new 'friend'.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's my birthday today and I've spent the whole day writing the next three chapters. I have no regrets. I think they are my favourites so far, have fun in this three-four part story arc.

It didn’t take long for the weekend to roll around once more, Steven had been informed of the change in time of the party and it didn’t seem to bother him too much. He had been somewhat excited for it after Connie had mentioned it, so moving the party forward meant that he wasn’t being tortured by his own emotions for the next couple of weeks, thinking about every possible scenario in which the party could have gone horribly wrong. 

Steven had once again seen Connie only once within the week, he didn’t want to bother her too much during her lunch breaks and he had been spending a lot of time with his dad down at the car wash. There wasn’t much else to it, but they had been texting a lot. Especially about the party at the weekend that they were both secretly dreading, Connie more so than Steven. 

It was Saturday night when they had seen each other again. The night of the party. Steven had agreed to pick Connie up at nine-thirty and sat in his car casually listening to music as he waited for her to find him. Once again, she wasn't prepared to let her parents know that she would have been getting into a boy’s car. She had already lied to them and said she was going to one of her friend’s houses and had been set a strict curfew. Connie could abide by that, as long as it meant that she and Steven could have a good evening together. 

Steven sat inside of the car with the engine on, gently tapping his hands along to the beat of the cheesy pop song that was on the radio. At first, he had been pretty nervous about the whole party, but as it loomed closer he got a little less nervous and a bit more excited. 

Connie clambered into the vehicle, glancing over at Steven and noticing his change of clothing. Steven was no longer sporting the snapback, for the first time Connie was able to truly see each and every one of his luscious black curls that protruded from his head in all directions. He wasn’t wearing his black hoodie, instead, it had been replaced by a black shirt with a collar which looked considerably smart for what it was. Not only that, but he was still wearing the pink varsity jacket as if he still needed a statement piece to wear. 

Steven glanced over to Connie, it seemed as if she had gone for a different style. It was more of a smart-casual look with shorts and a white shirt, very similar to what she had worn the night of Beach-a-palooza. However, this time it looked as if she had spent a lot more time tending to her hair and was that makeup? She certainly looked different, but not in a bad way - she looked a lot older. 

“You look nice.” Steven smiled, unable to get any other words out of his mouth. As she sat inside of the car he could smell the strong perfume that she was wearing, instantly overpowering the aftershave he had put on. 

“You do too. I like your shirt.” Connie smirked back, brushing her hair away from her face.

“I like your shirt.” 

“Well, I said it first.” Connie argued back, knowing that Steven was just attempting to poorly flirt with her. She didn’t mind, in fact, she loved the sentiment. 

“Fine. You win. Are you ready?” Steven pointed out to the road ahead. He knew exactly where the mayor lived - everyone in town did. 

“As ready as I’ll ever be.” Connie was nervous, clicking on her seatbelt before anxiously holding onto her knees. It would have been fine, she was with Steven. She felt safe in Steven’s presence, there was nothing to worry about. 

Steven nodded as he pulled off from the side of the road, starting their journey that would lead them to the party. It wasn’t so much a long drive, but they did find themselves stopping at more stop lights than what seemed normal. It seemed as if they were forced to be together for slightly longer than what was necessary. However, neither of them minded the company. 

As Steven approached the house that was parked just outside of town it became apparent that there was in fact a function happening there. Or at least, a crazy teen party. Steven struggled to find somewhere to park, realising that the entire street had been overrun by teenager’s cars. The sight of the cars made Connie’s heart drop. What was she doing? She didn’t want to be a part of some kind of house party. 

She didn’t want to upset Steven, sucking up any kind of anxiety she had and waiting patiently for Steven to park the car. She couldn’t help but laugh slightly as he parallel parked, sticking his tongue out slightly as he concentrated on the manoeuvre. 

They both stepped out of the car once it was parked, both of them feeling nervous about the function. As soon as they were out in the open they could hear the violent beat of the music down the street where the party was being held. It certainly was loud. 

“Are you okay?” Steven found himself standing beside Connie. Connie glanced over to him, her eyes finding their way to his new black shirt. 

Considering she had only ever seen him in the hoodie and jacket before, seeing him in just a shirt was a completely different experience. The shirt was fitted in all the right places, showing off Steven’s body that he usually tried so hard to hit. Connie made him feel confident, so suddenly showing off the slight bit of chub he did have didn’t feel so bad. He was worried about what Connie may have thought of him - but he just looked as handsome as always. 

“I’m a little nervous.” Connie laughed slightly as her expression dropped, Steven could see just how anxious she was about it. 

“We don’t have to go if you don’t want to.” Steven shrugged. It wasn’t about the party, it was about spending time together. 

“No, no! We’re here now. It would be a shame if we had to go home now. We may as well enjoy ourselves.” Connie managed to force half of a smile. 

“Would it help if I held your hand?” Steven looked over at Connie, he didn’t want her to feel alone. They were both in this together now and that meant that they weren’t going to back down. 

Connie glanced down at Steven’s hand he had suddenly held out for her to take. It was comforting to know that he wanted to be there for her regardless of when that was. Steven wasn’t embarrassed to show that affection in public, despite Connie being shy about the whole thing. However, it was true, it would have helped Connie if she had held his hand - so she did. 

She reached over and interlaced her slender fingers with his somewhat larger hand. Once again, they fitted so perfectly together. Connie didn’t even need to speak to confirm that holding his hand was the perfect solution to helping her feel better. Steven wanted to be hers and walking to the party together hand in hand proved that. 

They walked up to the house together, hand in hand and squeezing one another tightly whenever they felt their heart rate increase. Steven tried his hardest to keep his cool, internally screaming on the inside, but doing everything he possibly could to not allow Connie to see just how frightened he really was. 

The music was louder than either of them had expected and upon first glance going to the party was an incredibly bad idea. Neither of them had been to anything like it before, but they certainly didn’t quite expect it to be as crazy as the films made house parties out to be. It was only just approaching ten and it seemed as if half of the people were already completely wasted out of their mind. Steven and Connie walked up the path together, passing someone lying on the grass outside with a beer can in their hand. Connie squeezed Steven’s hand tighter - she really didn’t want to be there. 

Steven took a deep breath. They were going to do it. They were going to face their fears. He made sure to caress the top of Connie’s hand with his thumb, the only way he knew how to try and calm her.

“Steven! Connie! I can’t believe you guys actually came!” Lars shouted as he practically ran down the steps to the front of the house. They hadn’t quite expected to see him quite so soon. 

“Lars! It’s good to see you.” Steven smiled with an uneasy expression. It was great to see Lars, a familiar face amongst what looked to be absolute chaos. 

“You two need to come inside - it’s so much fun!” Lars threw his hands in the air, Steven and Connie slowly suspecting that perhaps he had been drinking. 

“Well…”

“C’mon, stop being such pussies and get with the programme. You’ll love it.” Lars practically grabbed Steven’s jacket and dragged them both up the steps to the house. 

Steven took a nervous stance as Lars dragged him, Connie following with her hand still connected tightly to Steven. He wasn’t going to let go of her no matter what. Connie furrowed her eyebrows as they passed the porch area of the house, she noticed the couple kissing on the bench outside. Was that what they looked like when they kissed? She hoped not. 

Steven hadn’t quite expected the music to be so loud as it hit them both when they entered the house. The house was huge, much larger than anywhere that Steven and Connie had visited before. It wasn’t large enough to have been considered a mansion, but just big enough to accommodate a family who was well off.

Steven noticed Connie squeeze his hand a little harder than before, he took note of the anxiety that being inside of the house gave her. Connie glanced around the room, happy that she had taken the time to put some makeup on. Although it didn’t mask the fact that she was only sixteen, it helped amongst the sheer amount of people within the house who were certainly of the latter high school years - some of which may have already been enrolled in college. From first glance, it seemed as if Connie and Steven were the youngest people there, but it was hard to tell. 

Lars led them over to a group of people all sat around a circle of couches, what once would have been a lovely family seating area had now become a home of young adults that felt the need to spread themselves out on the furniture. 

Steven was convinced that Lars was going to make them stop and speak to the large group of people, but instead continued to lead them out of the house and into the backyard. As they passed the kitchen Connie glanced in noticing that people were playing drinking games and shouting at one another. It wasn’t quite the kind of party that she had been to before. 

However, as soon as they stepped into the backyard they were greeted with a vast flurry of people all having what seemed to be a great time in and around the pool. It was strange to Steven and Connie the sheer amount of people that had turned up for the event, it seemed as if anyone and everyone had been invited. Well, there weren't quite any direct invites. 

“Look! Isn’t it cool?” Lars pointed to the pool that was in the backyard, surrounded by people as they looked as if they were having the time of their life. 

“Very cool.” Connie confirmed - it did look like a lot of fun! Maybe Connie should have loosened up a bit. 

“There’s drinks, snacks, whatever - just do whatever you want. Hey Buck!” Lars suddenly shouted across the pool at the guy on the opposite side looking rather casual in a red shirt hanging over a t-shirt. 

The man with the spiky brown hair glanced up at the voice, noticing the mention of his name. He was wearing a pair of sunglasses that covered his eyes, but his facial expression was near-emotionless. 

“Hey, Buck! Come and meet my friends!” Lars waved frantically. As much as Buck Dewey didn’t quite want to partake in any kind of social engagement with Lars, he was more than happy to welcome others to his house party. 

Buck wasn’t the kind of kid to throw a house party, especially not a crazy one. Yet, after being convinced by his friends to do so he was happy to go along with it. Sure, his dad was going to kill him - but that was just one of the many life experiences that he wanted to have under his belt. It was all about taking it one step at a time for Buck. 

Connie and Steven stood awkwardly beside Lars, they were both pretty worried about meeting Buck. It wasn’t as if they knew him. Steven had spoken to him a few times before, but nothing special had come out of their conversations. Most of them being friendly and mutual and usually about something that either of their fathers had done. 

“Sup.” Buck spoke quickly as he stepped over towards the small group, holding a full bottle of beer in one hand. It didn’t quite look as if he was drinking it, but just walking around with it in his hand for aesthetic purposes. 

“This is Steven and this is Connie.” Lars pointed at them both. 

“Hi.” Steven waved with his free hand. 

Buck stood for a moment, processing the names within his mind. 

“Hey, you’re Steven Universe. The car wash kid.” Buck pointed down at Steven, recognising him from the times in which their fathers had interacted. With Greg Universe being a small business owner in town it was only right for Mayor Dewey to go and make sure that he could have secured yet another vote. 

“Yeah, that’s me.” Steven smiled, he felt a little awkward about being referred to that way. He was certainly more than just the kid whose dad happened to own the car wash in town. 

“Sweet. It’s nice to meet you both, I hope that you enjoy the party.” Buck spoke with his usual deadpan tone. 

“Thank you.” Connie responded. It was nice for the host of the party to have acknowledged them. It made Connie feel slightly more relaxed. 

“It’s cool you’re here, keep on rocking.” Buck pointed towards them both before winking under his sunglasses and turning around to regain his position on the other side of the pool. 

Lars exchanged glances between Buck who was exiting the conversation and Steven and Connie. 

“You know Buck?” Lars questioned, staring down at Steven in shock. 

“Not really.”

“He just called you ‘cool’.”

“So?”

“He doesn’t do that unless you know him!” Lars groaned, just a little bit jealous that Buck had acknowledged Steven and yet his constant failed attempts at being friends with the cool kids continued to haunt him. 

“Sorry?” Steven felt unsure how he should have reacted. 

“Whatever. I’m going to wait back out the front to see if Sadie will actually show up or not. Probably not.” Lars rolled his eyes before throwing his hands into his pockets and making his way back through the house. 

Steven and Connie stood at the edge of the pool, still hand in hand. They both glanced around the party, now having been left by their chaperone they weren’t exactly quite sure what to do next. 

“So, what do you want to do?” Steven looked over at Connie. 

“I don’t know. What do people do at parties?” Connie was unsure as to what people really did at parties. At first glance, it seemed to be a whole lot of talking, drinking, acting a fool and kissing. 

“Hey, we’re heading inside for a game of beer pong. We're playing with the super simple rules. Do you guys want to join us?” A familiar sounding voice from behind them both sounded. 

Steven and Connie turned around, their train of thought interrupted by the one and only Buck Dewey accompanied by a pale and tall looking guy with baggy clothing. They both exchanged uncertain glances, unsure whether or not they should have accepted the offer. 

“We’re both minors and Steven is driving.” Connie furrowed her eyebrows, trying her hardest not to sound as uncool as the sentence sounded in her head. It wasn’t about being cool, it was about being safe. 

“That’s cool, you can still play.” Buck shrugged. 

“We’ll drink for you guys instead.” The pale guy mentioned, throwing his hands inside of his oversized hoodie. 

Connie and Steven stared at each other and shrugged in unison. It was certainly something to do and if they weren’t going to be forced to drink in what seemed to be a drinking game then they would have happily participated. 

“Okay, that sounds good.” Steven confirmed. 

They were both a little worried about participating in the game that they had been invited to. It didn’t quite seem like the kind of game that they usually would have liked to take part in. However, it did seem like a traditional party game and a right of passage. Connie thought that playing games of beer pong were mostly saved for college - but at least she could have gotten some practice in beforehand. 

Steven made sure to keep a hold of Connie as they re-entered the house. Buck led them into the kitchen where the game of beer pong was taking place. It seemed as if everyone had already established quite the game, with a lot of people participating and a crowd of spectators watching the drinking game play out. 

Buck stepped through the crowd, forcing people out of the way as he made his way to the front with the pale guy who seemed to assume the position of his friend. 

“Ah, Buck. Finally, someone who can finally make this miserable game fun.” A man on the opposite end of the table grinned smugly.

“Sorry Kevin, I’ve got some new players for you though.” Buck shrugged, moving out of the way to reveal Steven and Connie stood behind him. 

Kevin’s face dropped as he grimaced at the couple. He was dressed in a blue polo shirt and his friends were all pretty much wearing the same or a similar kind of thing. It seemed as if they all followed the college-aged kid blindly. 

“You can’t be serious. They’re kids!” Kevin practically shouted as he pointed towards Steven and Connie who were still securely holding hands. 

“Everyone gets a go, we don’t discriminate in this house. They deserve to have fun at this party too. They throw - Sour Cream and I will handle the rest.” Buck threw his thumb to his side towards the pale man with baggy clothing who went by the name Sour Cream. Sour Cream nodded in confirmation, still with his hands stuck inside of his hoodie. 

Kevin mumbled something under his breath before turning around and consulting with the other guy on his team. 

“This is bullshit. That’s not the point of the game.” Kevin scowled, specifically shooting a glare towards Steven. Steven cocked an eyebrow, he didn’t quite understand the other player’s sudden hatred for him. Steven hadn’t done anything wrong. Yet. 

“These are the rules of the people. Don’t like it - please leave.” Buck shrugged, placing the beer that he hadn’t even touched on the side of his kitchen counter. 

Kevin began to mumble once more. Steven watched him clench his fists, Kevin didn’t seem to be the kind of person that he wanted to get on the wrong side of. He didn’t quite like the behaviour that he exhibited. Connie felt slightly uncomfortable in his presence. 

It was okay, Steven was with her. They could defend themselves. 

“Here. You guys get the first shot, I'm calling it - make it count, guys.” Sour Cream grabbed a ping pong ball and passed it over to Steven. 

Steven stared at the ball in his spare hand. There were a lot of eyes on him within the room, including his newfound acquaintance - Kevin. 

“Do you want to go first?” Steven gulped as he turned towards Connie, holding up the ball. 

Connie was quick to shake her head. There was no way that she was going to be the first one to take a shot. 

“You’ve got this, my dude.” Buck patted Steven on the back and smiled down at him giving Steven a surge of much-needed confidence. 

As much as Steven didn’t want to let go of Connie, he knew that now was his time to shine. He gently loosened his grip away from her hand, feeling somewhat guilty with the action. It wasn’t as if he could have done it without his dominant hand. Connie didn’t mind one bit, internally routing for Steven as he made his first shot. 

Steven stood up to the mark and stared at the opposite end of the table, the cups in front of him lined up in the shape of a pyramid. It suddenly reminded him of the times in which he had been ten pin bowling. 

“What are you waiting for? Throw it!” Kevin shouted from the opposite end of the table, his tone impatient and aggressive. 

Steven wasn’t going to let a moron like Kevin get the better of his throw. Steven took a deep breath in before aiming up his shot and throwing the ball. The ping pong ball flew through the air as everyone waited in anticipation for it to land. Much to Kevin’s distaste, the ball landed directly in one of the cups. 

“Take it, Derek.” Kevin instructed his so-called friend, or more or less his lackey to take the drink. 

“No man, it’s your turn.” Derek argued. Kevin scowled towards the guy standing beside him. 

“Fine. Whatever.” Kevin sighed, picking the ball out of the cup before chugging back the beverage. 

“Nice shot, Steven!” Buck patted Steven on the shoulder once more. 

“Thanks!” Steven grinned, happy with his effort. 

Kevin wiggled his shoulders and pretentiously attempted to crack his neck as he prepared himself for his own shot. He took a slight step back before throwing the ball over and landing it directly in a cup. Buck didn’t hesitate to take the ball out of the cup and drink almost immediately. Steven was impressed with his deadpan way of handling the situation. 

“Hell yeah. That’s how we do it in this house, baby.” Kevin winked, pointing over towards the opposing team. 

“The game isn’t over yet.” Steven shrugged with a smile, suddenly becoming competitive at the game. He wanted to win. He needed them to win. He had to beat Kevin. 

“What did you say to me, kid?” Kevin barked across the table. 

“The game has just started, don’t get ahead of yourself.” Steven confirmed, scowling down the table at his opponent. He didn’t like the attitude that the young man showed towards him. Despite being much older, his immaturity irked Steven. 

Kevin held his tongue, wanting nothing more than to lash back out at Steven, but feeling the heavy hand of Derek holding his shoulder pulling him back. 

“Careful Steven, this is a friendly game. Now, let’s see what you’ve got, Connie.” Buck passed the ball over to Connie who reluctantly took it. 

Connie didn’t quite feel as if she had the confidence to throw the ball, but just from turning back and seeing Steven smiling at her, she felt as if it was something that she needed to do. 

“It’s okay, you’ll be great!” Steven smiled before throwing both his thumbs up. He wasn’t quite sure if throwing the ball was something that Connie particularly wanted to do, but Steven was willing to bet she would have felt great after doing so. Just like Steven, sometimes Connie just needed a little push to show her full potential. 

Connie had never been great at sports, well, she never particularly put much effort into them. Anything that meant a crowd of people would have watched her actions were the sort of things she tried to avoid. It didn’t matter whether that was a sport or whether that was a school play. Admittedly, she was pretty good when she put her mind to it. 

Connie took her mark, trying not to look at Kevin on the opposite end of the table. She had only briefly been in contact with the snarky man for a couple of minutes and she already despised him. He was everything she hated about people. He was pretentious and she wasn’t willing to give up the game for someone so horrid. 

Everyone watched in anticipation as Connie threw the ball. Just like Steven, she managed to throw the ball into a cup with ease. She couldn’t help but let out a little cheer, throwing her hand up in the process with excitement. The onlookers all cheered with her, suddenly routing for the team with the young teens. 

“Yeah! That was amazing!” Steven threw up his hand and opened his palm. Connie immediately reached up to high-five him. 

“You weren’t too bad yourself, Universe.” Connie winked. The perfect shot had suddenly fueled her confidence enough to flirt. 

“Oh yeah?” Steven chuckled, once again overwhelmed with that warm fuzzy feeling he felt whenever Connie was within his vicinity. 

“You guys are rad! Give us fives!” Sour Cream cheered as he too raised both his hands for Steven and Connie to slap their own hands against. They completed the task with ease, laughing at the compliments they were suddenly getting together. 

“Don’t get ahead of yourself, kid.” Kevin shouted across the table, mimicking what Steven had said previously and breaking up the celebrations. Kevin passed the cup and ball to Derek who picked the ball out before slurping down the drink. 

Steven stood beside Connie awaiting the next throw. Derek took the shot, throwing the ball completely out of range causing it to bounce off the side of the table and roll to the feet of somebody watching the event. 

Kevin immediately turned around and pushed Derek in the chest, clearly passionate and willing to get aggressive over the game. 

“What the hell!?!? What was that? The ball goes inside of the cup - how hard is that to understand?” Kevin growled angrily at Derek who had stumbled backwards after Kevin’s push. Derek didn’t want to fight back, choosing to stand in silence instead. 

“Hey Kevin...drink up.” Buck nodded towards Kevin, pointing at one of the cups.

Kevin stared down at the drink before picking it up and throwing it down his throat as quickly as humanly possible. He attempted to crush the cup in his hand, failing miserably before getting frustrated and throwing it off to the side. 

Kevin wiped his mouth with his arm and glowered directly at the party in front of him. 

There was no way he was going to be beaten by two kids. 

Nobody embarrassed Kevin…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We'll continue with the next part tomorrow. Let's just say, Kevin is not a happy bunny...he's a pretty salty dude. 
> 
> I can't wait to share the next couple of chapters, it gets pretty RADICAL. 
> 
> Let's get some teen drama up in here!


	14. Vanilla Bean Frappe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kevin makes things personal. 
> 
> Connie isn't quite prepared with what happens next. Maybe they should have just stuck together?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the birthday messages yesterday - it was really sweet of you all! <3

The game of beer pong had gone on for a long time. Kevin wasn’t willing to let his guard down when it came to being beaten by two kids who thought that they were cool enough to attend a twenty-first birthday party. They shouldn’t have even been there. Kevin was fuming. 

Steven and Connie were having a fantastic time together. Buck and Sour Cream were certainly good at encouraging them to continue playing and they had managed to gain quite an audience.

Steven didn’t quite realise how good he was at shooting the ball into the cup, he had played basketball a few times, but it certainly wasn’t the same. He had managed to throw every ball given to him into a cup, sinking them each time. Connie, on the other hand, had nearly managed to do the same, only missing one which the crowd had shown sheer sympathy for. 

Kevin didn’t want to back down. He knew that he couldn’t let Derek ruin his chances of winning, so unless Buck put stricter force on the game it was going to continue to be Steven and Connie versus Kevin. 

Kevin continued to get aggressive the more that the night continued, refusing to admit defeat whenever Steven and Connie managed to hand his defeat to him on a silver platter. Steven and Connie had spent the whole night laughing with one another, loosening up around the presence of each other and the people around them. 

Lars had even taken to watching the game, telling nearly everyone in the crowd that he had known Steven for as long as he could remember and that he worked with Connie. Nobody cared, but it made Lars feel better about himself. 

It seemed as if Steven and Connie had gained quite a fan club around them, people gathering all around to see the two teens defeat the person that they all believed to be the worst person attending the party despite him seeing it differently. Kevin was popular, but nobody really wanted to be friends with him. He was, in fact, a terrible person. 

As the last round came to a close Kevin was left with one cup in front of him and it was down to Connie to take the last shot. She had to get it for them to win. 

“Go on, Connie!”

“You can do it!” 

“Get him!”

The words of encouragement fuelled Connie’s concentration. Her eyebrows dipped as she stared at the cup on the opposite end of the table. Nothing else mattered. It was all down to this last shot. Connie had to make it. 

Spending the night with Steven had been fantastic and playing beer pong was actually a lot more fun than she had expected it to be. Maybe it was the fact that she found out she was actually pretty good at it or the fact that she was spending the time with Steven. Either way - it was great and she felt great about it too. Maybe parties weren’t so bad after all? 

It also helped her know that when she did eventually go to college that she would have a skill under her belt that she could have pulled out at a moment’s notice to surprise everyone. 

Connie quickly took the shot, not wanting to overthink it. The ball bounced on the table and she winced, sure that it wasn’t going to go in. However, as if by magic the ball landed inside of the cup causing them to win the game. 

The small crowd erupted into a loud burst of cheers, everyone suddenly sending the praise towards the two teens who had managed to beat Kevin on their first attempt of ever playing the game before. Everyone passed the attention over to them as Kevin stood with his fists clenched. 

“Connie! That was amazing!” Steven shouted over everyone, suddenly gripping onto her shoulders before pulling her in for a tight hug. 

Connie melted at the touch, already blushing so much from the praise that everyone was suddenly giving her for her newfound skill. 

“We did it!” Connie laughed as she pulled away from the hug to get a better look at Steven. They were so excited to have been celebrating their win together. 

Steven laughed at her excitement, neither of them able to hold it in as he pulled her in for another hug and rocked her back and forth. Connie played along with it, not minding in the slightest. She was just as excited, it was as if they had done so much more than just play a silly party game. It felt like so much more from the excessive praise that was occurring around them. 

“You guys were so good! I can’t believe you beat Kevin, that’s hilarious!” A girl with her hair cut into a bob laughed as she tapped Connie on the back. They both chuckled, smiling up at their new fans. 

“Our beer pong champions of the night - Steven and Connie!” Buck grabbed both of their hands in unison and threw them in the air. The people around them cheered happily, accepting the teens as their winners, despite only participating in one game. Everyone was too drunk to care. 

Steven and Connie exchanged glances with one another, incredibly happy to both be the centre of attention for once. It wasn’t like either of them liked to accept the praise and yet there they were, basking in the glory. 

They shared a moment of glory for a small moment before everyone finally went back to their business of dancing around a loudspeaker, speaking with friends, making out with a stranger or drinking heavily. 

Not Steven and Connie. They stood together, everyone around them finally dispersing. They had made their mark amongst the community and that was impressive in a sense. Sure, they were young - but they were certainly popular amongst everyone else. Everyone bar Kevin. 

“We were really good.” Connie laughed as Steven naturally found his arms looping around her back, pulling her into what seemed like a rather close hug. 

“We? Did you see your last shot?” Steven gasped, unable to fathom how gorgeous she looked under the bizarre choice of lighting within the kitchen. 

“Well…” Connie blushed - it was an incredibly good shot. She was certainly allowed to gloat about it. 

“I guess parties aren’t so bad after all.” Steven smiled, holding Connie close at the edge of the kitchen. 

“I guess not.” Connie smiled back as Steven gently let go of her. Steven ran his fingers through his curly hair, without the snapback on it was nice to see Steven’s luscious locks. Connie was jealous of his ability to touch his hair, all she wanted to do whenever she saw it was to run her fingers through it gracefully. 

“Are you okay if I go and get us some drinks? That funky grape soda maybe?” Steven chuckled, recalling their first time out together when he had practically been robbed by the food truck after purchasing two overpriced sodas. 

“Hey Connie! My name is Jenny, I saw you playing beer pong and I couldn’t help but be stunned by your hair. It’s amazing! What products do you use, girl?” A girl by the name of Jenny suddenly interrupted their conversation. 

“Oh wow, thank you!” Connie gushed, consciously moving her hair away from her face to show it off. Another girl had never complimented her like that before. 

“I’ll go and grab them drinks.” Steven gave Connie a thumbs up as he backed away. It seemed as if Connie was about to make a new friend and he didn’t want to ruin that. Connie nodded, giving him permission to break the agreement of sticking together throughout the party. It would have only been for a minute and Jenny seemed to be nice enough. 

Steven walked to the other side of the kitchen, near enough stepping around a corner away from Connie to get to the area in which the vast amount of drinks were located. He smiled when he noticed there were cans on the side, a little less worrying than having to pour the drinks himself. A part of him was worried someone would have been able to spike the drinks if they had previously been opened. 

There wasn’t any of the grape soda that Steven had previously suggested, but there was something there that was close enough. He was sure that Connie would have liked it either way. 

Steven stepped closer towards the table in which the soda was situated, suddenly stopped in his tracks by a taller figure. 

“What are you doing, kid?” The figure folded over their arms in front of Steven. Steven looked up only to see Kevin in front of him.

“Getting a soda. What do you want?” Steven felt no remorse in being rude. Kevin was a bigot and a sore loser, Steven wasn’t ever going to stoop to his level. 

“You made an ass of me back there. Y’know that right?” Kevin scowled down at Steven. 

“We did? Great. Can I get past you now?” Steven attempted to get past the person who should have been considered an adult, but in reality, was acting like a child. Kevin stepped in the way of Steven, not allowing him to pass. 

“I thought that girl you’re with looked pretty smart, but she must not be if she’s with you.” Kevin smirked as he watched Steven’s expression change dramatically. 

“Excuse me?” Steven stopped trying to get past, standing up straight in front of Kevin. 

“Well, she’s pretty and you’re...I’ll be level with you, kid - it’s not going to last. I've seen it all before.” Kevin spat, causing Steven to chew the inside of his lip attempting to control his anger. 

“What’s your problem?” Steven snapped back, unsure as to why the stranger had suddenly become so aggressive towards him. 

Kevin furrowed his eyebrows down at Steven, squinting in the process. There was something ticking inside of his mind. Kevin suddenly gasped before chuckling. 

“Hold on. Don’t you work at that car wash in town owned by the deadbeat rockstar with shit music? Oh my god, it’s you!” Kevin jeered, laughing at the sudden realisation of who Steven was and what his presence within the town was. 

Steven’s blood began to boil. 

“Wait, is that your dad? Yikes. What a joke.” Kevin laughed, using the information that he had gotten from his lackeys just moments ago to torment Steven. He had to get him back somehow. He had to hurt and embarrass Steven in the same way that Steven had made him feel. Steven had to pay. 

Steven had embarrassed Kevin in front of all of his friends and everyone that knew him. Kevin wasn’t going to be beaten by two kids. It just wasn’t going to happen - at least not on his watch. 

“That girl is smart and you didn’t even go to school, you dumb piece of shit. Do you think it’s okay to just come to a party way out of your league? You’re out of your depth, kid. You don’t belong here. She’s going to surpass you in absolutely everything and you're going to be left alone in this godforsaken town for the rest of your life in that sweaty carwash with your dad. You will amount to nothing.” Kevin prodded his finger into Steven’s shoulder, making Steven more and more furious. 

Steven clenched both of his fists together, he hadn’t been quite this angry in an incredibly long time. He was so angry that he could feel his eyes welling up. He hated what Kevin was saying, it was torture. All of the things that Steven thought about himself, suddenly presented before him. 

“I heard a rumour that your mom hated you so much she just copped out as soon as you were born. That’s crazy.” Kevin sniggered. 

“Don’t talk about my Mom!” Steven growled, a single tear suddenly dripping from the side of his face out of sheer anger. He felt hurt that somehow the people within the town had made up rumours about him throughout the years. Things that had been passed down from their parent's knowledge of the situation that occurred. 

“Aw, you’re crying! Don’t be mad at me, it’s not like I killed her or anything. It sounds like that was all on you...” Kevin grinned down at Steven, finally hitting the nerve that made him tick. 

“Fuck you!” Steven snapped, immediately throwing his hands out in front of him and pushing Kevin violently in the chest. 

Kevin stumbled back into the table with the drinks, a bottle or two falling off the surface and smashing on the floor below. Steven didn’t quite mean to push him so hard, despite him deserving it. It was never Steven’s intention to hurt anyone. 

Kevin’s face went red with rage as he lunged forward towards Steven, taking an incredibly violent swing at Steven’s face. Steven felt the impact of Kevin’s fist on his face instantly. He fell backwards slightly, the sudden pain making his entire face numb. 

Kevin’s eyes widened, realising how hard he had hit Steven, instantly pulling back and wincing in pain as he shook his hand around violently. 

“Woah! What’s going on?” Sour Cream instantly questioned as soon as he saw the scenario having made his way over after the smashing of bottles was heard. 

“This little psychopath went for me!” Kevin shouted, scowling down at the teen who was touching one side of his face. 

Steven was completely out of it, one side of his face entirely numb from the punch. Regardless of how much he lightly pressed his fingers against his eye, he couldn’t feel anything but pain. The skin around his eye began to swell on impact. 

“Yo, Steven! Are you okay?” Buck had somewhat expected a fight at his party, but he didn’t expect his new beer pong champion to be a part of it. 

“Yeah...” Steven was beyond seething, he was unable to control his temper after Kevin’s words. He had made him so upset. Steven dipped his head as a way to hide the sheer pulsating pain that was coming from his face and the tears that had started to trickle down his face. He was better than that. He needed to be tough. 

“What the hell, Kevin? Did you just punch a kid?” Jenny gasped as she stepped into the room, Connie following closely behind to see what was going on. 

“What? No! I was defending myself!” 

At first glance, Connie had realised the scenario with Steven pacing slightly covering his face and Kevin stood holding onto his wrist attempting to play himself out to be the victim. Connie didn’t hesitate to push past everyone to get to Steven. 

“Steven!” Connie gasped as she instantly gripped onto his shoulder to let him know that she was there for him. 

“Connie?” Steven looked up, seeing Connie in front of him with the eye that he could see out of. Her face was one of shock and concern. 

“Let’s get out of here.” Connie instructed, pulled Steven away from the scenario as quickly as possible as everyone else began to argue amongst themselves. 

They didn’t need to be in the crossfire, Connie suddenly wishing that she hadn’t left Steven’s side the whole night. If they hadn’t split off then she wouldn’t have been leading Steven outside around the side of the house to a quiet area with a small garden bench. Connie led Steven all the way there, holding onto him tightly as he walked in complete shock. 

He had never been punched in the face before. It wasn’t a nice feeling and Steven couldn’t wait for the buzzing in his ears to disappear. 

Connie sat Steven down on the bench and looked at him with concern, he still hadn’t removed his hand away from his face. 

“Steven! You’re bleeding!” Connie exclaimed as she noticed a small droplet of blood drip from his nose and onto his black shirt. Luckily the colour allowed it to blend in. 

“Oh.” Steven removed his hand away from his face, suddenly revealing the shocking swelling and damage that Kevin had caused with one intense blow. Was Steven just weak or was Kevin incredibly good at throwing punches? 

Connie audibly gasped at the swelling, she had never seen anything quite like it. Steven couldn’t see out of his left eye, unable to open it after the punch. Connie was speechless looking at the damage, unable to pass a single word as a figure came running around the corner. 

“I thought you might be around here. I was going to get you guys an ice pack or something, but the best I could find was...um...some peas.” Sour Cream slowly pulled out a bag of frozen peas from his pocket and handed them to Connie. 

“Thanks…” Connie was shocked by the kindness that everyone had shown them. Everyone aside from Kevin. 

“I hope you feel better soon, Steven. We’ll deal with the problem, here are some tissues too.” Sour Cream mumbled before passing over a packet of tissues and gently jogging back inside. 

Steven didn’t even raise his head when Sour Cream came over, he was still so stunned by the events. 

Connie furrowed her eyebrows as she held the bag of frozen peas and tissues. Connie took one of the tissues from the packet and used it to wipe Steven’s nose, he wasn’t bleeding too much and it didn’t take a lot of effort to stop. Connie couldn’t help her heart from aching as she wiped away the blood, Steven sat in near silence, quietly sobbing from shock, pain and the things that had been said about him. Kevin had hurt him both mentally and physically. 

“I hope this doesn’t hurt too much, but I do know it’ll help the swelling. It’s going to be cold.” Connie informed Steven as she gently placed her finger on the bottom of his chin, forcing him to lift his head. Steven glanced away the best he could as Connie placed the bag of frozen peas over his swollen eye. She didn't want to ice the eye directly - just the damage around it. 

Steven winced in pain, not quite expecting them to be quite as painfully cold. 

“I’m sorry.” Connie pressed her lips into a thin line, feeling incredibly guilty for making matters worse if even for just a moment. 

Steven felt terrible. He wanted to talk to Connie, but his insides were completely torn with emotion. What Kevin said had been true. All of it. Steven was a failure and he really wouldn’t have amounted to anything. 

“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to, but just know that I’m ready to listen when you do.” Connie continued to hold the peas against his face before using her other hand to wipe the tear that was running away from his undamaged eye. 

Steven’s bottom lip trembled. He didn’t deserve someone like Connie in his life. Kevin was right about Connie too - she was too good for him. Why would someone like Connie like someone like Steven? It was stupid of him to even consider the possibility they could have been together. It was silly. Steven was an idiot. 

Steven lifted his arm, taking control of the frozen peas as Connie slowly let go. She gave Steven a sympathetic look as he glanced down sadly, continuing to hold the frozen peas to his swollen eye. 

Despite his pouted lip, swollen eye, blood on his shirt and tears streaming down his face she still didn’t want to leave his side. No matter what. He had slowly started to become everything to her and she didn't want to change that for anybody. 

It was getting late out and Connie knew that soon enough her parents would have been questioning her whereabouts. It wasn't as if she hadn't already told them a lie, but that didn't always hold out for long in the Maheswaran residence. 

"Thank you." Steven croaked, barely about to get the words out. 

"It's okay. I can't believe he did that to you." Connie reached up and brushed his hair back with her fingers, wanting nothing more than to soothe him. 

"I shouldn't have let myself get angry." 

"Don't blame yourself for this. That guy is just...terrible. You saw how he acted throughout that whole game. He's just jealous because at least you can actually throw a ball." Connie gave Steven a sweet smile, making him feel a little better about the situation. 

"Yeah, I guess." Steven sighed, not ever wanting anything to do with Kevin ever again. Suddenly, he hated the idea of parties once again. 

Steven gently removed the bag of frozen peas and shivered in the process, his entire face had now gone numb due to the cold it was currently facing. Connie couldn't help but dip her eyebrows at the sight, she was incredibly upset that someone would have done that to Steven. It was uncalled for. 

"Am I still pretty?" Steven smirked, half of his face incredibly swollen from the hit. He couldn't see out of his left eye properly anymore after having closed itself from the swelling. Unfortunately, Connie suspected it wouldn't have been long before the swelling turned into a nice shiny black eye. 

"Of course you are!" Connie chuckled as she brought her hand up to Steven's face and gently stroked the side that hadn't been damaged in battle. 

"That's...good." Steven smiled, feeling so much better after Connie's simple words. 

"As handsome as always." Connie let the words slip as she tilted her head, allowing Steven to get a better look at her with only one functioning eye. 

Handsome? She thought he was handsome? 

"You think I'm handsome?" Steven couldn't help but smirk at the comment. 

"That's what I said, didn't I?" 

"Even with this?" Steven pointed to his eye. 

"Even with that." Connie confirmed, feeding Steven's ego. She thought he was handsome all the time and in the black shirt without the snapback, he was really starting to win her over. More so than before. 

It wasn't just about being cute - she found him physically attractive too. She found him...handsome. 'Hot' even?

"Woah." Steven chuckled slightly, nobody other than his family member had called him handsome before. The way that Connie said it didn't feel fake and it didn't feel platonic...it felt like she really meant it. 

Steven found himself unable to take his eye off Connie, he didn't quite notice at first, but throughout their short conversation, they had managed to shuffle closer together. It wasn't as if they tried to do that, it was as if they were naturally inclined to do so. 

Steven found himself placing the frozen peas behind him, he didn't want to hold onto them - they were too cold. He needed to keep icing the wound to reduce the swelling, but Connie was too distracting and way more important. Obviously. Not only that but if Steven had continued to hold them he wouldn't have been able to use his hand to play with Connie's hair. 

Connie shivered at the touch, smiling at the fact they had both gone silent once again, completely entranced by each other. It was as if they did that a lot. Connie didn't quite know what it meant, but she loved the feeling. She loved the longing gaze that Steven gave her as if she was the only person on earth. He made her feel wanted. He made her feel special. 

Steven suddenly found his other hand teetering on Connie's knee. It wasn't as if he meant it to be there, but he couldn't quite get enough. Connie didn't mind the touch, sending shivers down her spine that made her feel incredibly good about herself. They made her feel confident. 

There was tension in the air between them. They knew what both of them wanted, but it was up to them to choose who would have made that first move. It had felt like an eternity since they had last kissed and Steven wanted that to change. Connie wanted that to change - maybe even more so than Steven. 

They both leant forward towards each other, hesitant in their action before suddenly pressing their lips together rather desperately. They had wanted to do it once again for what seemed like forever. A longing that they couldn't quite solve without the other person's permission. The tension of wanting something, but being so unsure of whether or not the other person wanted the same thing. 

This time, neither of them held back. The kiss was somewhat sloppy and Steven fought through the pain that was radiating from one side of his face. It didn't matter, he would have done anything to feel her lips against his again. 

When first entering the party, Connie didn't want to be seen as the couple who publicly displayed their affection the way in which the couple she had seen were freely making out with one another against the side of the building. This was different - they were somewhat hidden around the side of the house with nobody in their view. They were alone. 

Neither of them had much experience in the field, but that didn't seem to matter. All they wanted to do was kiss and that was all their new skill set allowed them to do. 

It was amazing. Steven felt the sense of euphoria as his mouth was guided along by Connie who wanted the exact same thing. Steven had wanted to kiss her all night. He had wanted to kiss her all week. The idea had been driving him nuts and yet there had never been a perfect time to make his move. 

Now. Now was that time. 

Sort of...

Connie was so caught up in the moment that she couldn't concentrate on anything else. She couldn't help but feel like Steven made her lose her mind. She always found it stupid how the girl's on television could lose themselves over a boy, but now she knew just how easy that was. Connie was in a lane of her own and Steven was teaching her to drive. 

His lips were so soft and despite neither of them quite knowing what they were doing it wasn't as if either of them even gave it a second thought. It was perfect. Everything was perfect.

Despite everything being perfect, Steven gently pulled away leaving Connie rather dumbfounded as she felt their lips disconnect. Steven stared at her, speechless. His face was still red from both the injury and his tears.

"Are you okay?" Connie spoke softly, suddenly afraid that she had done something wrong. The palm of her hand was gently pressed against his chest, having made its way there as they kissed. 

"I'm...fine." Steven smiled, unable to hide the sheer amount of love he had for the girl. 

"Do you...want to go?" Connie suggested. It seemed as if the party had a lot more negativity that both of them had liked. 

"Where?" 

"Do you want to finish this in the back of your car?" Connie purred, completely taken back by the confidence she had. Steven was too. 

Steven's singular eye widened and if the other one wasn't swollen, that would have grown in size too. Steven's heart began to race as he gulped. Did she want to make out with him - in his car? 

"This?" Steven gulped.

"Us. Kissing. The back seat of your car." Connie didn't want to explain herself further. 

Steven was going to explode. 

"Y-yes." 

"You look like you've seen a ghost." Connie suddenly laughed, her hand slowly falling from his chest and back to her lap. 

"Do we take the peas?" Steven began sweating nervously, glancing down at the half-frozen peas that were sat on the bench. 

"Do you need them? I feel like it might be considered stealing." Connie chuckled. 

"Nope." 

No, Steven didn't need the peas. The only thing that Steven needed was Connie. She had helped subside the pain. 

Steven needed the peas to help the swelling and the pain, but a bag of frozen peas was not sexy. Steven would have sacrificed his chance to have a normal-looking face if it meant not having to hold a bag of frozen vegetables to his face as he kissed Connie. 

"Ready to go?" Connie held out her hand for Steven before standing up. 

Steven was going to lose himself. 

"Mmmhmm." Steven nodded. 

Steven grabbed ahold of Connie's hand as she led him away from the party. He was going to lose his mind. He couldn't hold in those three words for much longer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, the next chapter is...lowkey smutty? Um...it's not enough to be rated mature, but enough to hit that high teen mark. 
> 
> Whoops. 
> 
> Things are about to get a little less fluffy and for that - I'm sorry. 
> 
> I love how Steven's like 'ow! My face!' then suddenly 'uhhh pretty girl, duuuh. KISS????'.


	15. Caffè Misto

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Both Steven and Connie find out what it's like to be in the vicinity of another hormonal teenager. 
> 
> Connie really should have kept an eye on the time...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for a teenie tiny bit of smut. Is it considered smut? 
> 
> I don't know, man - there's some very passionate making out...with a few subtle hints to some things of a sexual nature. It's not...weird - if that's what you're asking LMAO. 
> 
> Basically, just don't read this chapter with your parents stood behind you. Easy?

Between the time it took for Steven and Connie to reach the car, Connie had once again taken claim to the pink varsity jacket. Steven was more than happy to accommodate, practically ripping it off his body when she requested. Steven had also undone the top two buttons on his shirt, giving him some breathing space after Connie had mentioned what she had wanted to do as he practically sweated buckets from the request. 

As soon as they reached the car, Steven was more than ready to jump into the back seat before Connie suddenly requested somewhere a little more private than the outside of the party where it was practically the same, if not as bad as being the couple outside the house. 

Once again it was a beautiful night and Connie had asked Steven several times if he was okay to drive with his injury. Steven insisted that it was fine, all it did was prohibit his vision slightly. If it was unsafe he wouldn't have driven Connie anywhere. 

Regardless, his raging teenage hormones would have done anything he possibly could to get into the backseat of his car with Connie. He wanted to kiss her again. He wanted to feel the touch of her soft skin against his.

Steven managed to park the car on the side of a quiet road, overlooking part of the town below. Even Connie ignored the view, incredibly distracted by the teenage boy who had won her heart. 

It didn't take long for them both to tumble into the backseat, Connie still drowning in the varsity jacket as she sat in the back. There were no words and no hesitation shared between them both as they opened the back doors and sat in middle seat as close as possible. 

The clock was ticking and Connie had been distracted the whole time, it wouldn't have been long until her parents went on a hunt for her. That didn't matter. Not now. Not now that she was with Steven.

Steven was adventurous and being with him gave her a thrill like no other. Amongst all of the books and exams that she had been plagued with throughout the year, being with Steven was the best reward she could have asked for. He was there to let her be a normal teenager. To fool around and do teenage things, ones she had never quite experienced before, ones she was worried she wouldn't have experienced before college. To have shared their first kiss and to have now been making out in the back of the Dondai Supremo was another thing. 

It took seconds for their lips to reconnect after clambering into the back as if they knew there was a task that needed to be completed and they were there to do it. The whole ride there had consisted of flirtatious gazes and gentle brushes of their hands. 

Steven hadn't quite expected Connie to take the bait when he attempted to get her closer, their lips unable to disconnect. Instead, as Steven moved his arm around her he couldn't help but open his eye in shock as she climbed on top of him, wrapping her arms around the back of his neck as she had done so once before. 

Connie was incredibly hooked on the moment, unable to get away from the boy's charm as she continued to kiss him passionately. Connie hadn't quite thought of the implications and suggestions that came with sitting on the boy's lap, but in a way, finding herself flattered that he was sexually attracted to her. Nobody had ever felt that way about her before. 

Steven kept his hands firmly just above her hips, not wanting to impose or suggest anything that would have been considered out of their comfort zone and skillset. 

He had never felt this way about anyone before. He had never been in love and he had never wanted someone so deeply before. The more that they kissed the more he struggled to find a way not to say those three words. He didn't want to say them in the heat of the moment when he was so, what seemed to be - sexually charged. It wasn't about that. It wasn't about that at all. He didn't want her to think that way of him, it was so much more than the love he felt when their lips were connected. 

He wanted her to know. He wanted her to know how he felt about her. It was killing him. 

At least, if he didn't say the specific words it wouldn't have been considered so bad? Would it? 

"Connie…" Steven breathed heavily as he forced their lips to part. He was so incredibly turned on by her fingers slowly threading through the back of his hair. He was going to go nuts. 

"Yeah?" Connie stared down at him, a part of her unable to not look at his swollen eye. In a way, the sentiment of him getting into what seemed to be a fight somehow made him more attractive. 

Steven bit onto the bottom of his lip, he attempted to look around the interior of the car before finding Connie's eyes once more. The smell of his aftershave on the varsity jacket had overpowered Connie's perfume that she was wearing at the start of the night. He glanced down at the jacket that she was wearing, once again being far too big for her. It looked...fantastic. 

She looked fantastic. 

He took a sharp breath inwards and built on his internal confidence to try and say the words he wanted to say. He was finding it incredibly difficult to concentrate on anything other than her legs either side of him as she sat so intimately close on top of his thighs. 

Steven bit his lip once more - he was going to say it. 

"I...um...I really like you." Despite his actions through the evening, he found it somewhat hard to finally spill the words. They weren't quite the ones that he wanted to say, but they were perfect for now. 

"Yeah?" Connie cocked an eyebrow, unable to stop herself from smiling. 

He liked her. He really liked her. 

"Yeah..." Steven confirmed, completely starstruck by the girl who was sitting slightly taller than him due to her new position she had assumed on his lap. 

Connie gently kissed his lips, unlike the rest of the kisses this one was slow and full of charm. Not only that, it only lasted a few seconds before she pulled away, continuing to play with the hair at the back of his head. 

"Well, that's a relief. I really like you too." Connie smiled down at him, causing Steven to be overrun with emotions and hormones. 

Steven kissed her once more, this time not as soft as she had done. This time it was hard and passionate, enough that they could have knocked each other's teeth out if they pushed hard enough. Steven loved being a teenager and finally being able to experience the type of kiss that only came up in inappropriate dreams was certainly something else.

Connie made sure to gently tug on the back of his hair, each slight movement and pull sending satisfying shivers down his spine. It took an entirely new mental battle to not buck his hips, a somewhat hormonal reaction to the scenario. Despite neither of them quite knowing what they were doing - they had both seen numerous movies in which characters had done things to their partners as a way to pleasure them. That's all either of them wanted, for their partner to feel ultimate pleasure and comfort. 

Steven saw through the pain on one side of his face, unable to concentrate on anything other than the soft and sensual kisses that Connie had started to plant along his neck. Steven couldn't help but let a slight moan escape from his lips, something that he nor Connie had quite expected. As hilarious as Connie thought the noise was - she kept quiet. In fact, it enlightened her with confidence knowing that what she was doing was providing Steven with sheer elation. 

They were teens that wanted nothing more than to fool around with one another. Connie had never done anything of the sorts and found it alluring that Steven was quite clearly incredibly attracted to her. She had never been this intimate with anyone before and yet Steven made it seem so natural. She felt in control and comfortable. 

Only weeks ago she wouldn't have been able to imagine she would be in the back of the regular's car with their hips in such close proximity that they could practically feel each other under their clothes. 

As much as Steven loved her kissing his neck, he loved it a little too much. He pulled her back slightly so that he could reconnect with her lips instead out of fear that if she continued he would make an embarrassing mess of himself.

Connie was worried that he didn't like the kisses she had planted on his neck - of course, they had been slightly more passionate and aggressive to the last. However, Steven's next kiss was just as loving as the last. She did, however, notice him attempting to readjust Connie's position on his lap. The closer she was the more at risk he was of the touch causing him to lose all decency. 

Just as they began to lose themselves in the kiss once more, Connie felt a sudden vibration on the top of her leg. Connie instantly pulled away in shock, fumbling around for her phone as Steven loosened his grip around her waist. Connie stared at the caller ID, her heart sinking at the words 'Mom' spread across the screen. 

"Oh no..." Connie mumbled, glancing up and realising that it had nearly reached curfew. 

Steven stared up at her in shock as she answered the phone. He didn't want her to go.

"Hello. Sorry Ma'am, I got a little...caught up." Connie looked down at Steven, still using her spare had to touch the back of his hair. Steven stuck his tongue out, knowing exactly what she was referring to. Connie tried her hardest not to laugh at his immaturity, knowing that her mother would have disapproved of her giggling mid-conversation. She poked the tip of his nose gently in retaliation. 

Steven could briefly hear the voice crackle through the phone. Whoever was on the other side of the phone sounded mad. Angry that Connie wasn't home yet. Steven's aunts could be strict, but they were never that strict. Steven felt somewhat sorry for Connie and her controlling parents. 

As Connie spoke on the phone Steven reached up and began to lovingly push the hair out of her eyes and gently tucked it behind her ear. He did this several times, trying to calm her down as she held the phone to the opposite ear. She was clearly stressed with the sudden change in plan. 

"I'll be home within the next thirty minutes. I can't get there any sooner. I'm sorry. It won't happen again. I know. See you soon." Connie sighed, unhappy that she was suddenly taken away from someone and something that had made her evening. 

What she would have loved was for them to have spent the night in the back of the car, or at least most of the night. If they had more time they could have laid together on the car roof and watched the stars. Maybe another time? 

"Parents?" Steven questioned.

"My Mom. She's going to kill me if I don't go home right this instant." Connie groaned, suddenly dropping her head onto Steven's shoulder and nuzzling herself into the crook of his neck. 

Steven gulped at the touch, despite them being close all night she was suddenly a lot closer as she put her entire body against him, her fingers still playing with the back of his hair. He knew that she could feel him pushed against her - everything about him. 

Everything...

"Oh." 

"I want to stay here." Connie sighed, looking up at the back of Steven's hair and watching as her fingers twirled around a curl. Oh, what she would have given to spend the night with Steven. 

"I want you to stay here too...but I don't think your parents would let you." Steven let out a small chuckle. He too would have killed to cuddle with her all night. 

"Ugh. One day they'll let me do something other than study." Connie grumbled. 

"What? Something like...this." 

"No, Steven - not like this." Connie laughed as she pulled away from the hug. 

Steven felt the detach as Connie climbed off him and exited the vehicle before getting back into the passenger seat. Steven followed, awkwardly hobbling out of the car and into the driver's seat attempting to hide the strain underneath his waist. Connie had most certainly seen, he shouldn't have been embarrassed about it, but he just couldn't help it. It was something completely out of his control and if anything, Connie had found it flattering. 

Steven attempted to readjust himself in the driver's seat, nothing would have ever been able to compare to the night that he had just experienced. Of course, it had its immense lows and he was punched in the face - but nothing was better than what he had experienced with Connie. Everything else suddenly became...worth it. 

Connie sat in the passenger seat staring out the window, there was only one thing on her mind and that was Steven Universe. He had admitted to liking her and she had said the same back - what did that mean? 

Were they in a relationship now? Were they exclusive? Not that either of them was on the prowl for any kind of relationship, but exclusivity was a must for them both. As soon as Steven had first laid his eyes on Connie he knew he wouldn't have been able to focus on anyone else. 

Even as they drove back to Connie's house, Steven found it hard to keep his eyes on the road. Or at least, his eye. As if his vision hadn't already been impaired enough, he had stupidly managed to forfeit the safety of them both with his constant glances. 

Luckily for them both, they managed to get back to Connie's house in one piece. Connie hadn't quite been concentrating and didn't notice when Steven had pulled up right outside of her house, so caught up in everything that he had completely forgotten the rule about making sure to drop her off at the bus stop.

Steven pulled the handbrake as he stopped, turning and focusing all his attention on Connie. 

"It's been really - oh no." Connie began staring back at Steven, his dreamy what would have been eyes, but was now only the one. Her eyes widened as she peered over his shoulder, noticing some familiar figures exiting the house. 

Steven didn't quite clock what was happening as Connie practically stumbled out of the car. Steven turned around only to see two parental figures walking towards his car. Steven was in big trouble. 

"You were supposed to be home over an hour ago, young lady. What sort of time do you think this is? Why are you wearing that jacket again? I thought I told you to return it! Whose car is this? Who is that?" Priyanka Maheswaran bellowed as she pointed just about everything out that Connie didn't want her to ever find out about. 

Steven shyly stepped out of the car, using the car door to shield himself. What a mood killer. 

"That's Steven - my friend." Connie pointed over towards the car. Steven was happy he was no longer considered a regular and had been promoted to a friend. He was okay with that - at least in front of her parents. 

Her mother took one glance at Steven and gasped, immediately noticing his swollen eye. Her father, Doug Maheswaran stood by with his arms folded. He knew when it came to his daughter to let his wife sort out the punishments. 

"Hello, Mr and Mrs Maheswaran." Steven waved before awkwardly grabbing a hold of the back of his neck. 

"What happened to your eye? Have you been in a fight? Connie, who are you associating yourself with?" Priyanka gasped. 

"I just got punched at a par-" 

"Nothing. He tripped. He tripped and fell. Straight on his face - just like that." Connie panicked, chuckling lightly and trying her hardest to poorly cover the truth. 

"Connie! Don't lie to your mother." Doug inputted. 

"It's okay. I'm fine." Steven shrugged, trying to make the situation better but in turn making it so much worse. 

"I want the names and numbers of both of your parents. This is unacceptable. How could you associate with this wannabe criminal?" Priyanka stormed over to Steven before turning back around and scowling at Connie. 

Steven, a criminal? He was far from it. Connie had never felt more embarrassed in her entire life. She was going to have to apologise to Steven wholeheartedly and repeatedly. 

"You want to speak to my dad?" Steven furrowed his eyebrows, somewhat confused. 

"Steven hasn't done anything wrong!" Connie shouted, unable to quite express how angry she had become at her parents. She didn't want Steven to get into trouble, she had no idea what his father was like when it came to this kind of thing. 

"I don't know that, Connie. What were you involved in? Where were you?" Priyanka snapped, turning back to her daughter. 

"We went to a party - okay?" Connie admitted, anything to get her off Steven's back. 

"With alcohol? Drugs? Did you drink and drive?" Priyanka once again turned and scowled at Steven. 

"I don't drink." Steven threw his hands in the air. 

"Doug - fetch the breathalyser." 

"Mom!" Connie groaned as her dad paced back into the house. 

"What's your name?" Priyanka began her interrogation on Steven. 

"Steven Universe." 

"You're on very thin ice, young man. I wouldn't lie any further." 

"Lie? That's...my name." Steven was confused. He wasn't lying! 

"You're telling me your last name is Universe?" 

"Yes…"

"Your father's name?" 

"Greg Universe." 

"You have got to be kidding me." 

"He's telling the truth, Mom!" Connie shouted. 

"I didn't ask for your input." 

"It's my dad's name. He changed it legally for his career." Steven practically begged for Connie's mother to believe him. 

"What sort of a career calls for that kind of name?" 

"He's a rockstar... Ma'am." Steven scratched the back of his neck as Priyanka's face dropped hysterically. 

Priyanka pulled out her phone and stared back at Steven. 

“Number. Now.” Priyanka was incredibly unimpressed with the teenager's behaviour. 

Steven reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, finding his dad’s mobile number. It was pretty late and a part of him was hoping that his dad didn’t pick up, depending what Connie’s mom had in store for him. 

Priyanka dialled the number into her phone as Steven read out the number. She placed the phone to her ear and listened to it ring. Steven exchanged a worried expression with Connie. He was in trouble. Big trouble. 

“Hello, is this Greg...Universe? My name is Dr. Priyanka Maheswaran. I’m currently with your son, Steven. He’s been to a party tonight with my daughter, Connie. It looks as if he’s been in a fight and there were drugs and alcohol at the party and I am unsure if he has consumed any. He is also driving and I have no idea if he is under the influence. It is unacceptable behaviour. I need you to come and collect him and bring someone to take his car back with you - I will not have your son come anywhere near my daughter or my house, do you understand? This is coming from one concerned parent to another, I hope you understand. Okay, I will text you the address. Thank you, bye.” Priyanka spoke in a harsh tone, Steven couldn’t quite imagine what was running through his father’s mind. 

Steven’s mind was going through a flurry of emotions. He was anxious as to what his father would have said. He was mad at Connie’s mom for her lack of trust and accusations. He felt sad that this was something that Connie had to put up with more often than once. He felt embarrassed that he had gotten into what looked to have been a fight. 

Did she say that Steven wasn’t allowed to see Connie anymore? 

Steven couldn’t help but notice the pulsating pain that came from his eye. The frozen peas had soothed it for a while, but he certainly hadn’t held them on for long enough. If he hadn’t been too busy kissing Connie maybe the injury wouldn’t have swollen as much as it had done. He had been too distracted. 

“Your father is on his way. I’m going to get you an ice pack for that eye. Connie, go straight to your room - give your dad your phone on the way up.” Priyanka directed. 

“Bu-” Connie began to argue. 

“This is not a discussion, young lady. Now! Steven, keys.” Priyanka instructed. Was it okay for her to take Steven’s keys? Was that theft? Could she have done that? 

Steven didn’t want to get on the wrong side of the lady. He was already on the worst side possible, but he certainly didn’t want to make it worse. It seemed as if Doug had somehow gotten lost upon looking for the breathalyser kit. Either that or he simply couldn’t find it - Steven was grateful. 

Connie wrapped the pink varsity jacket around herself as she trailed into the house, she knew it was best not to keep arguing with her mother. She never would have won - no matter how hard she tried. 

Steven looked over at Connie with a sad expression as he watched her disappear into the house. He leant down and turned the key in the ignition before locking the car and handing the keys over to Priyanka. 

Priyanka instructed for Steven to wait outside, not wanting the young man inside of her house. Steven could have run then and there, but he didn’t want to have proved them right. He wasn’t a criminal and he certainly wasn’t...a bad influence for their daughter. He hadn’t exactly done anything wrong. 

He stood outside the house and poked his index fingers together, kicking the dirt beneath his shoes in frustration. It didn’t take long for Priyanka to return, instructing for Steven to sit down on the step outside the front of the house. Steven didn’t want to speak as she cleaned and tended to his wound. 

As much as Priyanka didn’t approve of the boy, she was still a mother and a doctor and that both came before her distaste for people. 

“Unbelievable. Disgusting.” Priyanka was filled with rage, more so provoked as she turned Steven’s neck and noticed the fresh bruise that Connie had left there earlier on. Steven didn’t quite know what she was referring to. He remembered Connie’s lips in the same position as to where she was looking, but he didn’t know that it had left a mark. 

Steven didn’t want to provoke her further, keeping his mouth shut as she instructed Steven to keep the ice pack on his eye after she had cleaned it. 

“I don’t know what you’ve been doing with my daughter - but it ends now. You are not to see her. You are not to text her. Connie is incredibly focused on her studies and she need not be fraternising with people like you.” Priyanka demanded before standing up tall and looming over Steven. 

Steven gulped up at her before touching the side of his neck where she had commented. He felt somewhat bruised. D-Did Connie give him a hickey? Oh no…

How was he supposed to explain that to his dad? How was he supposed to explain that to his aunts? He was so stupid - why did he get himself so caught up in the moment to allow such a semi-permanent sign to the whole world as to what he had been participating in? 

Just before Steven could attempt to argue back in regards to Connie a van pulled up outside of the residence. The Mr Universe branded van stood out almost immediately in the normal-looking street. 

Steven continued to hold the ice pack against his face as he watched both his dad and his aunt Pearl step out. Oh no - not both of them. He couldn’t have dealt with all of this in one single night. 

“You must be Mr and Mrs Universe?” Priyanka questioned. 

Greg and Pearl exchanged glances. Pearl couldn’t help but snort slightly. 

“Heavens no - I’m Steven’s aunt.” Pearl corrected, her stomach churning slightly at the thought of marrying Greg Universe. 

“Steven! We texted you - where have you been?” Greg suddenly took the role of strict parent, a role he had never been able to fill before. At least when the situation didn’t call for it. Steven didn’t deserve to be told off for any of this. 

Admittedly, Steven hadn’t bothered checking his phone since very early on in the evening. He had been pretty preoccupied with playing beer pong, fighting bullies and making out with Connie in the back of his car. 

“I was out.” Steven suddenly didn’t want to cooperate. Incredibly upset that everyone seemed to think that it was okay to put the blame on him for just about anything and everything. 

“Your son has been attending a party with drugs and alcohol. He’s also been incredibly inappropriate with my daughter. I do not wish for him to return here, but I expect you to punish him accordingly.” Priyanka passed Steven’s car keys to Pearl, she wasn’t going to give them up to anyone but a responsible adult. 

Pearl and Greg were in complete shock, whatever it was that the lady was trying to say about Steven it sounded incredibly out of character. Steven wasn't a bad kid, he just suffered from a lot of repressed issues that nobody in his family wanted to talk about. Steven had been the happiest he had been in a long time and suddenly all of that had been stripped away from him without a moment’s notice. 

“In the van - now.” Greg took his turn to be the strict parent, something that he didn’t have to be often. 

Steven mumbled something inaudible under his breath as he walked over to the passenger side of the van. He didn’t want to be involved with whatever conversation it was that his dad was suddenly now having with Connie’s mom. He debated whether or not it would have been better to have gone back with Pearl in his own car, but Pearl could be stricter and colder than his dad. 

However, on this very occasion, it didn’t quite seem to be the case. Greg didn’t look happy at all. 

Steven waited in the car, keeping a hold of the ice pack to his eye and chewing on his bottom lip in frustration. This was not how he wanted the night to go. This was not how he had expected it to turn out. Just hours ago things were going so well - he had even told Connie how much she meant to him. They had gotten closer than ever. 

He didn’t want her to be the barista at the local coffee shop. He wanted her to be his girlfriend and yet suddenly with their parents in the way it seemed as if that was just a pipedream. 

Greg climbed up into the van, looking at Steven who was covering his eye. The one thing he couldn’t cover was the hickey on the side of his neck that just so happened to be the first thing that Greg noticed. 

“I don’t know what to say to you.” Greg shook his head as he turned the ignition. 

“Then don’t say anything.” Steven snapped. He had never been this angry at a situation before. It wasn’t just Kevin that had made him incredibly emotionally fuelled with anger that evening. 

“What’s gotten into you?” 

“I don’t know, Dad!” 

“This is about that girl - isn’t it? Did you get into a fight because of that girl?” Greg scowled at his son, exchanging glances between the road and Steven. 

“Her name is Connie and I didn’t get into a fight.” 

“Don’t lie to me, Steven. You don’t just get black eyes.” 

“Maybe I do?” Steven couldn’t help but be snarky with his dad. Did his dad really see him as Dr Mahaeswaran did? A failure? A ‘wannabe criminal’? 

“Steven! I’m not messing around - this is serious. You really upset Connie’s mother.” Greg was starting to get more and more frustrated with his son. 

“Connie’s mother thinks I’m a criminal. I haven’t done anything wrong. It’s nothing.” 

“Well, that swollen eye of yours doesn’t look like nothing. That bruise on your neck certainly doesn’t look like nothing either. What have you been doing with that girl? Have you been having sex? Is this what this is about?” Greg didn’t quite know that parenting a teenager would have come with all these challenges. 

“What? Dad, no!” Steven defended himself, it wasn’t about that at all. 

"I didn't raise you to be disrespectful to others." Greg furrowed his eyebrows as he kept his eyes on the road ahead. He didn’t want to look at Steven. 

“You didn’t raise me at all.” Steven mumbled under his breath. 

“What?” 

“Nothing, Dad! Just stop. Do you really think I would get in a fight? Do you really think I would try and hurt Connie? Don’t you think I’m a little upset? This is the first time in months I’ve been what I would consider remotely happy and suddenly I’m not allowed that anymore? She made me happy, Dad. I’m not going to stop seeing her just because her mom thinks I’m a raging drink driving criminal! I'm not even drunk! I'm actually incredibly dehydrated.” Steven raised his voice, unable to control the emotions that rushed through him. 

“I don’t know what you’re like anymore, Steven. You seem to be acting differently now - how about the rest of the time?” Greg countered back. 

“You wouldn’t know - you’re never around.” Steven huffed, hitting Greg violently with his words. 

Greg tried his hardest not to be offended by the words that his son had provided him with. Greg tried near enough everything when Steven was a kid to try and get them by day to day. He couldn’t quite believe how ungrateful Steven was being after everything that he had done. Sure, he could have been a better dad - but nobody had a rulebook for that kind of thing. 

Steven blamed his dad for not leading a normal start to his childhood and that was something that could never have been forgiven. Greg had the means to seek help in the beginning when trying to raise a child alone but never bothered to admit that he needed help. It took thirteen years of Steven’s life for Greg to figure out that perhaps he wasn’t quite cut out for it all and needed a hand. 

“Are you still talking to th-”

“The therapist? No.” 

“Steven, you can’t just stop going. That’s not going to help anyone.” Greg complained.

“I didn’t want to go anymore. They made me feel worse.” Steven leant on the window, still holding the ice pack to his eye. 

“So, we’ll get you a new therapist.” 

“It’s not the therapist, Dad. It’s the concept. I don’t want to go. I don’t need to talk to anyone.” 

“And I don’t want to see you get as sick as you did last year. Do you know how worried I was? Steven, I love you - we’re only looking out for you. We want to know what’s going on and when things like...this happen - it makes us worried about you.” Greg assured all he wanted to know was how his son’s mental health was. He didn’t quite ask for much more. 

“What do you want me to say? Yes, I got into a fight because yeah - I did. I pushed some guy who thought that he was better than me and he punched me back. Satisfied? Is that what you wanted to hear?” Steven removed the ice pack from his eye, it was still incredibly swollen and the ice pack had just made it incredibly numb. 

“I just want you to tell me that you’ll be okay this time. I'm scared, Steven!” Greg glanced down sadly at the middle of the steering wheel. 

“I’ll be okay…” Steven sighed heavily. 

He would have said anything to end the conversation. It was all about whatever his father wanted to hear to feel better about himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Doug - fetch the breathalyser." is my new favourite line. 
> 
> So, um...this is my favourite chapter so far. 
> 
> What do you think?????????


	16. Black Coffee

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connie is fed up of her parent's control. We learn a little more about Steven's experiences with mental health the previous year.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PLEASE READ BEFORE CONTINUING!!! 
> 
> TRIGGER WARNINGS!!! - SUICIDE MENTIONS, DEPRESSION, MENTAL HEALTH, SELF HARM, DEATH
> 
> This chapter will give you some insight into why Steven acts the way that he does and brings up some very tough topics. This chapter is entirely skippable if you do not feel comfortable reading it. I must warn that the topics are very heavy and the mentions of suicide and depression are very repetitive. A lot of these things have briefly been mentioned in previous chapters - but not this in-depth. Please proceed with caution.

Connie had spent the evening lying on her back in bed staring up at the ceiling. Her parents had completely embarrassed her in front of Steven and there wasn’t quite any way of getting back from that. Not only that, but Connie’s heart ached at the idea that her parents were forbidding her from ever seeing Steven again. 

That was ridiculous. 

Connie felt bad that her mother had made Steven feel so insignificant. It wasn’t fair on Steven to have to take that kind of abuse from someone that he had never even met before. It was unfair on Steven and it was unfair on Connie. 

If only her parents knew how sweet Steven was then perhaps it wouldn’t have been such a problem. The problem was that Connie was spending her time with a boy when she could have been focusing on the necessities in life like making sure that she got early admissions into college. 

She was still awaiting a letter to see if she could have gotten in just before she turned seventeen. It was already July and she hadn’t heard anything yet. It was unlikely. 

Connie couldn’t quite wait to go to college - at least then she would have been able to escape from her parents dictatorship. Nothing that Connie did was through a decision that she had made - it was all about what her parents wanted and what they wanted her to be. 

She was incredibly surprised that they weren’t pushing her down the doctor or lawyer route. Connie had somewhat convinced them that studying sociology would have been the best middle ground for those careers. It was her only way of being able to study something that she wanted whilst still attempting to please them. 

This had nothing to do with Steven. It wasn’t about Steven as a person. It was more about the fact that he wasn’t the best suiter for their daughter. They had expected her first love to look a little more...well...less beaten up? Steven didn’t exactly have the image of the young man studying to be a lawyer that they had expected Connie to return home with after attending college for years. Steven hadn't even been to school.

They didn’t want her to discover that love until she was out of college. Nothing was going to distract her from her work. Distractions were the kind of thing that left people to be service workers for the rest of their life. 

“Do you want to work in the coffee shop for your whole life?” Was a common phrase that her mother used ever since she had gotten the summer job. For the most part, she used it to as an example regarding her coworkers who were about to become adults who had decided not to go to college. 

“That’s where you’ll end up.” 

Was that a threat? Connie was unsure about everything. Working at the coffee shop her entire life wouldn’t have even been a bad thing. Sure, she got frustrated with some of the customers that came in and expected the world - but the job was simple. It wasn’t as if she had to study for hours to become a barista, all they had done was get her to look through a health and safety manual and then practically teach her how to use the machines. It wasn’t something you needed to go to college for, but certainly something that could have been perfected over time. 

Connie laid with Steven’s pink varsity jacket wrapped around her. It seemed like only moments ago they were tangled up with one another in the backseat of his Dondai. It didn’t take long for everything within that perfect moment to fall through. Connie wished that she didn’t live with her parents. She no longer wanted to live under their rulings. 

Of course, most of their reasoning was because they cared about her. Of course they cared about her! They were her parents after all. That didn’t mean that they weren’t sometimes incredibly suffocating and overbearing in their parenting. Connie really wanted to get away from them, in the nicest way possible. College would have been her first time to finally escape from their crushing grip and allow her to be whoever she wanted to be. 

She could have been with Steven if she wanted. She was sixteen years old and that was certainly old enough to make her own choices in life and what direction she wanted to head towards. It wasn’t fair that they expected any different from her. She was the one who had to decide what she would get out of life. It wasn’t about them. 

Yet as she stared up at the ceiling with the jacket wrapped around her she couldn’t help but think of Steven and how he was probably stuck inside of a van on the way home talking things out with his dad. It wasn’t Steven’s fault and she knew that - he just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. 

She could hear the faint sound of her parents talking to one another downstairs. Usually she liked to be nosey and hear what it was that they were saying about her - but this time she was just too deflated to care. She had given up her phone and given it to her dad upon the terms of her entering the house again. It was wrong of her to be grounded - it felt as if she was far too old for this kind of behaviour. 

They treated her like a child. 

Connie knew that her parents were more than likely discussing how bad of a human being Steven Universe was and she certainly wasn’t going to take part in that conversation. It just wasn’t true. Steven wasn’t like what they thought he was. Sure, he wasn’t a lawyer or a doctor - but he was certainly something. 

He didn’t exactly come across as one of the best people her parents had met after he rocked up after a party with a swollen eye that was sure to turn black. Maybe her Mom was right...it did make him look a lot more boisterous than reality depicted. 

Steven wasn’t like that image that her mother had seen of him. If only she knew the real Steven Universe - maybe then she would have liked him? 

Steven was sweet and kind. He was loveable and funny. He looked after Connie just as much as she looked after him in return. Sure, she hadn’t known him for that long - but it didn’t seem as if she needed to. He always seemed to be so open about everything with her. He wasn’t afraid to cry in front of her either and he had shared some of his hardships within the first week that they had met. 

He was honest. 

Unfortunately, Steven hadn’t completely been honest about his past. It wasn’t as if the things that he was hiding were things that needed to be shared with someone like Connie. Steven had initially hoped that if their relationship developed he would have eventually been able to share the incredibly personal experience that he had. 

It wasn’t something that people usually shared within their first week of meeting someone new and Steven had slipped in the beginning, giving away more of his past than he would have liked. Connie didn’t seem to mind and it felt good for Steven to have been able to vent slightly about the thing that seemed to plague his entire existence. 

It was only last year that Steven had suffered with an intense mental breakdown. It could have been the years of building up repressed emotions about his mother, father and other family members. Either way - it had felt awful. 

As he progressed through his teenage years he noticed that he was suffering from intense bouts of depression. Something that he tried his hardest to hide from his family. He didn’t want his father to come home from tour and worry about him, despite being somewhat upset that his dad didn’t come home more often. He certainly didn’t want any of his aunts to be on his case, even though they began to notice early on his change in behaviours and the patterns in which he acted. 

Steven had started to become a lot less social. It wasn’t as if he was a social butterfly before that point, but he didn’t quite enjoy going out anywhere. It wasn’t like he had done before in the past. He spent so much of his time cooped up in his room refusing to do anything more than watch sad films and play video games. It started to become a rare occurrence for him to even get dressed for the day. 

Naturally, his aunts had become increasingly worried about this newfound behaviour. They tried to help - they really did. Despite trying, it wasn’t as if anything could have solved sixteen years of sheer trauma that he had been building upon since the day that he was born. 

Steven didn’t ask for this. Steven didn’t ask for any of it and yet that was all that was ever in front of him. He didn’t have a choice but to face the reality of the world every single day despite never wanting to go outside. 

It wasn’t as if he could have distracted himself with school, having never been he didn’t even have that to keep his mind at bay. Of course, his aunts gave him homeschooling, but it seemed as if for the most part it was minimal - especially during the times in which he just found himself too sad to get out of bed. 

Steven was sad. Steven was really sad. 

Sad to the point in which he didn’t quite want to get out of bed because he didn’t want to wake up the next morning. He had nothing. He was a dumb teenager with nothing to live for. It wasn’t as if he would have ever amounted to anything. There was nothing in his life worth living for - there was nothing in his life that made him happy. 

His aunts were always around, but that didn’t make him any less lonely. He had never had a proper education and couldn’t help but just feel like an idiot half of the time for not quite understanding other people the way that he should have. He felt stupid. He was useless. 

He tried. He tried to get better. It didn’t work - he was too useless to even try hard enough to get himself better. 

His dad kept promising to come home and despite doing pitstops back in Beach City it was never long enough for Steven to offload his problems. He blamed everything - but most of all he blamed himself. He hated himself more than anyone. 

For someone who showed so much love to others, it felt strange for Steven to not know or understand how he possibly couldn’t love himself even if he tried. He felt stupid. Ugly. Worthless. Lonely. 

More than half of his life was spent in the back of a van listening to his own father’s problems. He didn’t need to be reminded every single day that his father was a struggling musician. When Steven was younger he was convinced that his father was the best person in the whole wide universe. He was a rockstar. A famous musician. 

He wasn’t. He was a washed-up guitar player who struggled to tour and if someone didn’t buy one of his t-shirts at the merch table that night then it was likely that Steven would have to skip a meal. It was no way to raise a child - but Greg knew no different. 

He did. Steven hated him for it. There were so many opportunities where Greg could have given Steven back to his aunts to take care of - but for some reason he wouldn’t let go of his pride. It was his son and he was going to raise him. He could have accepted the help - but refused. 

Greg was in a loving relationship with Rose and hadn't quite expected the events that played out to have happened. Not in a million years would he have been able to predict the complications that childbirth presented for the mother. As Greg welcomed Steven into the world he also had to say goodbye to the love of his life. He was distraught. 

Steven’s life improved dramatically when he went to live in Beach City permanently - but that didn’t mean that the last thirteen years of his life didn’t happen.

It had taken Steven months to move from the rut that meant that he didn’t want to wake up the next morning. It seemed as if he had to nearly fall off the ledge as a way to realise how bad his mental health had gotten. Literally. Well, at least get close enough to not...jump.

It had been a cool summer’s night when Steven stood on the hill by the lighthouse above his house. He had both of his arms spread out wide as he took a deep breath of the ocean air before him. There were tears streaming down either side of his face as he stood teetering over the edge. 

Steven felt so much pain within him. He could never have been fixed. He could never have changed. He certainly couldn’t have changed his past. He was the cause of all the turmoil that happened within his family. He was a continuous riptide that caused all the awful events that the family had experienced. If he was never born his mother would never have died. 

He wished he had never been born. 

He wouldn’t ever have been happy - no matter what he tried. 

Did Steven want to die? He still couldn’t quite answer that question. He was incredibly afraid of what his answer would have been. There was no way that he wanted to hear himself admit that maybe, yes - he did want to die. 

The Earth was such a beautiful place and Steven valued everything about it. Sometimes it was the people that made the earth beautiful, but other times it was the people that made it ugly. 

Steven had a lot to learn when it came to the world around him. He had little to no life experience. He was sixteen years old - he hadn’t even touched on any human experiences that didn’t consist of eating food from a can and music festivals. He wanted more from life and yet Beach City wasn’t providing that for him. 

He wanted to jump onto the rocks below. He wanted everything to stop. 

No. He didn’t. He didn’t want to die. 

What was he doing with himself? How did he possibly get to this point in his life where he was contemplating his own death? Steven was always so happy - or at least it seemed like he was around other people. Little did they know what his true demons were feeding him. 

It was pointless. What was the point in him jumping? Nobody would have cared. His dad would have continued touring and his aunts would have probably loved to have the space back in the house. 

Steven slumped himself down on the hill, keeping his legs hanging over the edge as he looked down at the ocean pulling in and out in the breeze. It was peaceful. A vast contrast to how the rest of his life was. 

Why didn’t he come up here more often? 

Right - he might have eventually built up the courage to jump. 

He didn’t really want that. He just wanted help. He wanted someone to listen to him. He wanted someone to care for him. He wanted someone to understand what he was going through. He couldn’t speak to his aunts. He couldn’t speak to his dad. 

He had to. He had to let them know what he was going through. 

Steven didn’t want them to know - he was too embarrassed to admit something so serious. However, he didn’t have to. He didn’t have to tell them because he had already done so through the letters he had left on his bed before he had exited, hoping to never return again. 

By the time that Steven had returned back home - Pearl was already sat on the end of his bed in tears reading the note he had written. He was distraught. All of his final thoughts and feelings were out in the open. Words that he only expected people to see and to read after he had already departed. 

He didn’t want Pearl to read his thoughts and feelings. He didn’t want to be around when she did. 

Yet in that moment when he begged her to give him the note back, she realised how much they had been neglecting Steven’s mental health. They didn’t want to admit how serious things had gotten. 

Pearl practically tackled Steven as he attempted to rip the note back from her, both of them in a mess of tears as his two other aunts, Amethyst and Garnet came into the room to help restrain him. Steven didn’t know how bad it would have felt to have them have to pin him to the floor to stop him from lashing out or running back to the hill and having the confidence to jump. 

Steven cried harder than he had ever cried before. His aunts were completely distraught by the sound of his howls as they held him on the ground, unsure what would happen if they didn’t. None of them had been prepared for that evening in which each of them had read the painful words that Steven had enough heart to write. 

He had poured out everything onto that page - the ink even smudging slightly in places as he cried when he wrote it. 

Steven had managed to rip the page when trying to fight Pearl for it, but the words were still eligible much to Steven’s discretion. They had to show each other to discuss their next course of action with the boy. 

How could they have him living under their roof if he was a danger to himself? 

He had been so prepared to end it all. 

For the first time ever - Greg came home from tour for a reason other than finishing his last show. He had come home early for the first time since he had started his touring career as a teenager. Greg couldn’t quite believe how bad his son had been feeling without telling anyone about it. How were they supposed to know?

They all couldn’t help but feel guilty - forgetting that it wasn’t all about them. 

Steven was still a minor. It was up to them to decide the course of action they wanted to take to protect him from his own mind. They wanted to protect him from himself. 

Throughout all of it, they never quite caught onto the pain that all of this had caused Steven. It felt awful knowing that everyone knew how he felt. It made him feel guilty. How could he have ever considered doing something so drastic? How would they have felt? 

Steven didn’t want to die, but had got to a point in his life where he was too afraid to continue living. 

He didn’t know what to do. 

His family decided to keep him in an intense programme until the end of summer - they had poured their savings into making sure that Steven got the best treatment possible. Being in the programme made him feel worse about himself, but it did teach him a lot. 

Along with being dosed up on meds and being forced to talk about his problems, Steven eventually got to a point where he was ready to return back home. A point where he could have felt a lot better about himself.

He continued to go to weekly therapy sessions, but the depression still lingered. As much as the meds distracted him from getting as far into the void that he no longer wanted to be there, that didn’t mean he didn’t sometimes feel worthless. Therapy didn’t make him feel better about himself. 

During that time he had learnt to drive and his family had started to trust him again with his independence, despite spending so much time worrying about his well being. They still did. No matter where he went they always worried in the back of their minds that he wouldn’t return. A fear that had been embedding into them from the events that had occurred the previous year. 

Steven didn’t feel better and he still had very bad days - but Connie had helped him out of the rut he was starting to fall back into. After all the progress he had made it would have been a dramatic change to go back to feeling as bad as he did the previous summer. 

He didn’t want to lose her now. 

He couldn't lose her now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love you all. Stay safe. Please remember to reach out if you ever feel like this. 
> 
> You deserve to be heard - there will always be someone who will listen to you. Don't give up hope. 
> 
> For me, personally, when I have been in a tough time like this there is a fantastic helpline in the UK called Samaritans (https://www.samaritans.org/). You can call them up and speak about whatever you like. Whether or not that's your problems, or you just want to chat with someone. They'll always be there to listen. 
> 
> For everyone international, here's a really useful Tumblr blog with a list of helplines. https://togetherweare-strong.tumblr.com/helpline
> 
> Never go through this alone. We are with you 100% of the way. <3
> 
> See you next chapter.


	17. Vanilla Crème

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven needs to learn to be more patient with people and takes some heavy advice from Garnet. 
> 
> It seems as if the Mahaeswaran household have decided on Connie's punishment for her previous night's antics.

‘Hey. R u there?’

‘I didn’t mean to upset your mom. I’m sorry. I hope that u r ok.’

‘Is there anything I can do to fix this?’

‘My dad is really mad at me.’

‘Connie?’

‘I think you’ve probably been grounded. That sucks.’

‘You’ll see these messages too late. Oh hahaha.’ 

‘I had a really fun night.’

‘U were really good at Kevin Pong. That’s my new name for beer pong. The sober version. Our version. We make a really good team!’

‘Thanks for looking after me btw. My face still hurts lol. Well, it’s super black now. My aunt Amethyst keeps trying to touch it, it’s kind of gross looking.’

‘Thanks for y’know…everything.’

‘I hope we can hang out again.’

‘As by hang out - I mean kiss you again. :P’

‘When I said that I liked u I really meant it. I do.’

‘Maybe we could kiss in front of the frozen peas again.’

‘Hahaha sorry - bad joke.’

‘Unless…’

‘No, sorry. No peas.’

‘I’m bad at this. I hope that ur ok.’ 

‘Connniiieeeeeeeee. I can’t believe u r going to see these messages when u get ur phone bck.’ 

‘I am so sorry.’

‘It’s ok. I shld probably stop texting now.’

‘I hope I have an unlimited data plan. I think it is. I get like 30GB data too.’ 

‘C u soon? xP’ 

‘Meet u in the back seat of my cat?’

‘*Car.’

‘Oh boy. Is this weird? Am I being weird? I don’t want to make you uncomfortable. I’m sorry.’

‘Last night was crazy. I just want to c u again. I’m not good with this stuff and I’m not good at text. I’m not good at flirting. I want to b all these things - I probably just come across as annoying.’

‘I’m not great at talking either though.’ 

‘Kevin said something about my Mom and it made me angry so I freaked out. I’m not like that. I don’t want you to think that’s who I am. I don’t want your parents to think that of me either. I was just upset.’ 

‘I just get sad sometimes and idk how to make it stop. Right? But since I’ve met you I’m not so sad! U make me happy. I’m so glad that we met.’ 

‘Sorry. That was too much. Anyway, I hope I can speak to u soon x.’

‘Sorry, I didn’t mean to put x.’

‘I meant to put xxxxx hahaha.’

‘Ok bye - make sure to look after my jacket x’

There was a stream of one-sided texts. It seemed to go on forever, every one with the word ‘delivered’ underneath them. Not a single one being read. Connie hadn’t been online on anything since early yesterday evening. 

The last text she had sent to Steven was regarding him picking her up for the party. Steven hadn’t seen or heard from her since and was starting to get worried. 

He didn’t want to seem desperate and yet he couldn’t help but try and text her whenever possible. In a way he wanted her to know that when she did get a chance to pick up her phone once again that he was thinking of her. He was still so angry and upset from the events that had happened the night before. 

Steven didn’t know what to do with himself. There was nothing for him to do that would have made him feel any better. Was he ever going to see Connie again? 

He stared into the bathroom mirror. He looked awful. 

More so than usual. 

He hadn’t had a shower yet - but he wasn’t planning to. He certainly didn’t feel like it when he was too busy stressing about the previous night. 

The swelling around his eye had reduced ever so slightly, replacing the red swelling for a dark bruise that looked terrible. It looked like Steven had been in a real fight and had lost dramatically. 

Steven didn’t lose. It was one single punch and nothing more. Kevin had certainly punched harder than he had been expecting, but it seemed to have been the angle of the punch that was the cause of all the damage. Steven had never been punched in the face before and he was hoping that he never got punched in the face again. It was not an enjoyable experience. 

A part of Steven wished that he had punched Kevin back. Oh, what he would have given to have ruined that pretentious guys good looking face. Steven wished that he could have hurt Kevin in a way that he hurt him. 

Steven shouldn’t have been thinking that way, he didn’t want to stoop to Kevin’s level. Kevin was worthless - not Steven. 

Being with Connie after they had exited the party had been so reassuring to him. A sure way of him knowing that he wasn’t a complete loser. He needed Connie to show him that he meant something to someone. 

Steven sighed as he began to dig through the bathroom cabinet. He was sure one of his aunts had some kind of makeup that he could have used to cover up the monstrosity that was on his face. He eventually found a tube of pale foundation that could have possibly matched his skin tone. 

Steven began to apply the foundation, it wasn’t exactly spot on in terms of colour but it was the closest he was going to get to match his skin tone. It certainly didn’t look great, but anything was going to be better than the black eye that stood out dramatically on his face. 

Steven sighed once more, looking in the mirror and seeing himself again. It was terrible. Everything was terrible. Steven couldn’t have one nice thing without something going wrong. Why couldn’t he have had a teenage romance without all of the drama? 

If Connie was grounded then there were only two places she could have been and that was her house or the coffee shop. Steven was determined to try both - even if he had been told that he wasn’t allowed to do either. Nobody needed to know where he was going. He was going to sneak out. 

He wanted to speak to Connie’s parents, try and reason with them. He wasn’t a bad person and he wanted them to know that. He didn’t want them to hate him - he had no ill intent. 

Steven couldn’t help but smile as he noticed the mark that Connie had left on his neck from the night before. It was rather suggestive but made Steven feel special. She had marked him for a reason - he was hers. He loved the sentiment but knew that everyone around him wouldn’t. Steven applied the foundation to his neck to cover up the hickey, still embarrassed that his whole family now knew what kind of teenage shenanigans he had been up to. 

Steven put his usual black snapback on his head and pulled it down, he didn’t want anyone to draw attention to him. He looked back in the mirror with the cap on. 

He couldn’t. He couldn’t show up to Connie’s house wearing a snapback. What would they have thought of him? 

He hadn’t showered, his hair was a mess and he looked so tired that the underneath of his undamaged eye was dark despite not being the one that had gotten punched.

It was hopeless. Maybe he should have just waited? Maybe there was no point in going out of his way to fix things himself?

Steven stepped out of the bathroom and immediately headed for the door, he was ready to beeline out of the house and into his car before someone stepped in his path and immediately stopped him from continuing. 

“Where are you going?” 

Steven looked up at his aunt Garnet with wide eyes, she was a tall, broad-shouldered woman who could have beaten just about anyone in a fight. Whether that was a fight with fists or a fight with her words. Garnet never stood down. 

“Ummm…” Steven didn’t quite expect to be caught out so quickly. 

“You’re going out to see Connie again - aren’t you? The one who you’re not allowed to see.” Garnet cocked an eyebrow down at Steven, sorely unimpressed with his attempts to escape. 

Steven wanted to lie to Garnet, but just knew he couldn’t. Out of the three aunts that he had - he was glad that Garnet had been the one to stop him. Steven didn’t say a word but instead stood there awkwardly with his arms folded. 

“I’m on your side, y’know that - right?” Garnet continued to look down at him. 

Steven stared back up. 

“On my side?”

“I’m an advocate for all things love and I think it was wrong of Connie’s parents to assume things about you based on the way you look.” Garnet relayed the information that she had been told by Pearl late last night. 

“Yeah. It was.” 

“But you still have a chance to prove to them who you are - in time. You need to learn to be patient with people.” Garnet placed both her hands onto Steven’s shoulders, looking down at him with a slight smile. 

“I am patient with people.” 

“You do tend to rush into things. You sometimes let your emotions control you when you need to think about things first. People need a chance to cool down and you...you need to rest.” Garnet slowly ran her finger across his cheek, noticing how tired he looked. 

“I just...what if her parents never let me hang out with her again?” Steven looked up with sadness in his eyes. 

“You’re both teenagers - I’m sure you’ll find a way. Besides, you have that Universe charm your dad is always talking about. When the time is right, you’ll win over her parents. I’m recommending that maybe you give them a chance to speak things through with Connie too. I’m sure she also has a lot to say.” Garnet patted Steven on the head. 

Steven felt better after speaking to Garnet. He didn’t feel as if he needed to rush out and speak to Connie. Maybe Garnet was right? Maybe Steven did think a lot with his emotions. 

He had certainly put his emotions first last night when it came to picking a fight with Kevin. There was no thinking involved then. Not only that, but he hadn’t exactly thought about the implications of dropping Connie back at her house. It was once again something that he had done in the spur of the moment completely caught up by his emotions. 

Garnet was right - as always. 

Steven sighed heavily. 

“So what? I just wait around all day? Wait for Connie to be ungrounded? At least, I’m assuming she’s grounded.” Steven glanced across the room and stared at the room as he thought back to the previous night. It certainly seemed as if her parents were going to ground her. 

“I mean...they can’t ground her from the coffee shop. Can they?” Garnet shrugged. 

Ground. Coffee shop. Steven resisted the urge to make a pun about coffee. Now was not the time. 

Garnet was once again right - they wouldn’t have been able to take her out of work. Steven would just have to wait until she was working again to go and see her. It was really that simple. He just couldn’t be hyper-emotional about it. He had to wait and then he had to wait some more. He couldn't rush. 

“I guess not…”

Steven knew that he would have made it his mission to make sure that he got to see Connie once again - regardless of what anyone else said on the subject. Her parents couldn’t stop him from going to see her. It wasn’t fair. 

Although, the way in which Dr Mahaeswaran had scolded him for just being on their doorstep incited fear into his very being. She was one very scary lady and Steven didn't want to be in any kind of dispute with her. All he wanted to do was to love her daughter. 

Was that too much to ask? 

Connie had spent the whole day in her bedroom. It seemed as if even her parents didn’t want to speak to her. She only came out so that she could eat and had resulted in filling her cup of water up from the bathroom sink as a further way to avoid her parents downstairs. 

She wished that she had been working that day. That way she wouldn’t have been confined to the four walls of her room. She would have been free. 

Connie couldn’t quite imagine what was going through Steven's mind. He must have hated her. There was no way that he couldn’t have after how her mother had treated him. After such a perfect night together it had all been so awkwardly ruined by her parents. 

Connie tried to study as a way to keep her mind off everything, but that was exactly what her parents wanted her to do. They wanted her to be a mindless zombie who did nothing more than study for her future. She somewhat refused, skimming through her textbooks and using her time as wisely as possible by spinning in her desk chair and staring at the ceiling. 

She hadn’t taken off Steven’s jacket the whole time, despite her bedroom being rather warm during the day. She often found herself bringing the collar up to her cheeks and taking a deep breath of Steven’s aftershave. It hadn’t been so long ago since that was all she could smell when pressed up against him. 

Connie smiled - she hadn’t forgotten what he had said to her. 

‘I really like you’. 

The words echoed in Connie’s mind, they had so much meaning. It wasn’t as powerful as saying that he loved her, but it was enough to make her feel giddy and force her to the edge of her seat. Connie found it utterly ridiculous that she felt this way about a boy and yet...that was all she wanted to think about. 

She wanted to think about Steven. She wanted to think about how passionate his kisses had been, how desperately he wanted to be close to her. She thought about her own lips pressed against his neck or her fingers threading through the back of his hair. She thought about how closely pressed their hips were together. The comfortable humid warmth of the car created by their own body heat. How awkwardly embarrassed Steven had been about himself despite never mentioning a word about it…

Connie groaned as she spun in the desk chair. She hadn’t even spoken to him about what had happened between him and Kevin - she had just assumed what may have happened and skimmed past it. If Steven wanted to make out rather than talk about it then she wouldn’t complain - maybe it was his new way of coping? 

There was a sudden knock on Connie’s bedroom door causing her to sit up straight in the chair. She fixed her hair slightly as the door opened only to reveal both of her parents. It was late Sunday afternoon and they hadn’t spoken to her since sending her to her room the night before. 

Priyanka and Doug walked into the room and sat side by side together on Connie’s bed, facing her in the desk chair. They were silent for a moment and Connie was confused as to what her parents wanted from her. Were they here to tell her off again? She had already had a lecture out in the middle of the street in front of their whole neighbourhood. They may as well have done the private version too. 

“Connie, your mother and I are very disappointed with your behaviour. You disobeyed us and lied to us without thinking about the consequences. We thought you were mature enough to be trusted and we’re upset to say that it doesn’t seem to be the case.” Doug barely choked on the words, as if he was following a script that they had planned out the whole day. 

Her parents were disappointed in her. Connie never wanted to disappoint her parents. 

“Your father and I know what it’s like to be teenagers. You think you know everything about the world - but you don’t.” Priyanka commented, a lot more aggressive than Doug. 

Connie couldn’t quite imagine her parents as teenagers. She couldn’t even picture them being the kind of teenagers to attend parties or even be the kind of teenagers to fool around in the back of a car. Actually, she didn’t quite want to think about that last part. 

“I think it’s important that this is a learning curve for you so that you understand your wrongdoings. You need to learn to take responsibility.” Priyanka continued. 

“We’ve discussed what happened last night and well...we’re not too impressed. We’re going to revoke your privileges for the next week. You go to work and you come straight home. No phone other than for going back and forth to work as a precaution in case you need to contact us. Nothing else.” Doug didn’t like playing the strict parent, but Priyanka had moulded him into the role. 

“And I meant it when I said no seeing that Steven Universe boy last night. That’s never happening again.” Priyanka was firm with her words, completely serious in her tone. 

“What?” Connie audibly gasped, speaking for the first time since they had entered the room. Her parents were incredibly strict - but she was hoping that her mother could have relaxed this one rule. 

“I mean it, Connie. He’s bad news and only serves as a distraction from your work. I don’t want you around him.” 

“You don’t even know him!” Connie argued back. 

“Boys like that only want one thing and that’s to destroy your life before it has even begun. I won’t let you ruin your chances to excel in your studies over a boy!” Priyanka raised her voice as she spoke. 

“It’s not...like that…” Connie’s eyebrows fell flat as her expression grew from one of anger to sheer deflation with an essence of embarrassment. 

“No? Well, he’s been texting you repeatedly all night. It seems to be pretty serious.” Priyanka suddenly pulled out Connie’s phone.

Oh no. Her parents could read her texts…

What had he said? What had he sent? Her heart dropped. Steven was the sort of person who sent all kinds of texts. They ranged from incredibly bad jokes to pictures of cats. There were no in-betweens. 

Connie’s face dropped as her mother unlocked her phone. 

“Here’s a good one. At six minutes past ten this morning, he texted ‘meet you in the backseat of my cat?’ before quickly correcting it to ‘car’. What does that mean? What were you doing in his car?” Priyanka scowled as she pointed to the text on the screen that Connie couldn’t quite read from the distance between them. 

“Don’t you mean ‘cat’?” Doug snorted slightly before being shot an incredibly menacing glare from his wife. 

Connie was mortified. What was she supposed to say? She couldn’t tell them. She couldn’t tell them!!! Oh no. 

“Nothing!” Connie suddenly blurted out. 

“He seems to mention wanting to kiss you again quite a lot for it to be ‘nothing’. Don’t lie to me, young lady. It’ll only make things worse. Did you kiss this boy?” Priyanka pointed to the phone once more. 

Yes, Connie had kissed him plenty of times now. Maybe not enough. She did want to kiss him more. 

“I...yes…” Connie glanced down at the floor as she played with a loose thread on the end of Steven’s sleeve. 

“Just kissing?” 

“Yes!” 

“You are sixteen years old! If I find out that there is any more to this than what you say I am going to be incredibly unhappy with you.” Priyanka shook her head dramatically with disappointment. Doug was fuming that there was some teenager who thought it was acceptable to get that close to his daughter. 

“There’s nothing else! We just kissed! That’s it!” Connie raised her voice at her parents, overwhelmed with emotion and embarrassment. 

Through Steven’s messages they had gained an understanding of what had occurred that night. Of course, it was incredibly brief compared to what had happened. Not only that, but they had seen Steven’s what looked to be a sincere apology towards them over text. That wasn’t enough. They didn’t know how much of that was the truth. 

Other than finding out that Steven had been with their daughter playing sober beer pong and kissing, they also discovered Steven had rather low self-esteem. They also noticed him mentioning frozen peas, which perplexed them at first until Priyanka remembered that he had said he had previously iced the wound before she tried to help. 

“Nothing else?”

“Nothing! Mom, I promise!” Connie was telling the truth. They did nothing more than kiss. 

Priyanka sighed, for once it seemed as if she believed her daughter. Her words sounded desperate and sincere. She stood up and shook her head once more down at Connie. 

“I’m going to need to take that jacket.” 

“What?” Connie gasped, suddenly hugging herself. She had become so precious over the jacket. If she wasn’t allowed to see Steven then the jacket was the next best thing she had. 

“The jacket. It’s not yours and I need to return it to his father.” Priyanka instructed. 

“He gave it to me.” Connie defended, she wasn’t going to let the jacket up easily. 

“I don’t want it in my house. I don’t want anything to do with that boy anywhere near my house!”

“Mom, please. It’s just a jacket.” Connie practically begged. 

“It’s his jacket. Now, Connie. I’m not going to argue with you.” Priyanka held out her hand awaiting Connie to take the jacket off. She wasn’t going to accept anything else. 

Connie knew that she couldn’t win. She glanced down sadly at the jacket and ran her fingers along the beaten buttons that could no longer pop together even if she tried. Connie reluctantly removed the jacket, sliding it down her arms and taking a deep breath inwards to get one last reminder of Steven. She looked up at her mom with a sad expression as she handed over the jacket. 

“You’re not to see that boy. Under any circumstance.” 

Connie gulped at the words. 

There was no way that was going to...work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am very afraid of this story being a whole lot of nothing. I fear that with everything I write. I hope that I can continue to provide fulfilling chapters that entertain you, that is my goal. 
> 
> I return to work this week, so I apologies if updates slow down slightly. I will try to prevent that from happening as much as possible though. You guys are all so awesome and I wouldn't want to disappoint you. I do, however, do this for free - it is merely a hobby that I love lmao. So, please bear with me if I do fall behind. 
> 
> I have been struggling to write the next couple of chapters - so I would appreciate a lot of encouragement, feedback etc. It would mean the world to me. 
> 
> What do you want to see explored? What are you enjoying the most about the story? What's something you want to happen, but hasn't yet? Is there any characters you haven't seen - but want to? Do you want more sad or do you want more happy? 
> 
> I'd love to know!!! Please let me know! <3


	18. Iced Honey Latte

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Perhaps sneaking around isn't a viable plan for their future, but hey - it is kind of hot!

Connie just knew that at some point during her day at work Steven would have walked through the doors. 

What was she going to say to him? She couldn’t just tell him that she didn’t want to see him ever again. 

That wasn’t what she wanted. That was what her parents wanted. 

Was it sensible to rebel and go completely against her parent’s wishes? Was that the best thing for her to do after already making them so mad? What would they have done if they found out that she was still spending time with him?

Steven came to the coffee shop all of the time. Even if she managed to shake him from her love life it wasn’t as if she could just disconnect him. There was no way that she would have been able to avoid him unless she quit her job at the coffee shop or hid behind the counter whenever he came in. 

That wasn’t fair. That wasn’t fair on her and it certainly wasn’t fair on Steven. 

She had never felt such complicated feelings before. Was it worth throwing away her whole relationship with her parents for a boy? Maybe her mom was right about that? Was it worth it? Was Steven just a phase?

He couldn’t just be some dumb teenage phase, it had only been a few weeks and yet she felt like she had a connection with him that could have lasted a lifetime. Was she just being a dumb teen? Was that all she was? A stupid teenager who liked a boy a little bit too much that she was willing to throw away her whole future? 

Was Steven even interested in her as a person or was he just physically attracted to her? He didn’t make her feel like that - at least not until they made out in the back of his car. He was certainly physically attracted to her then. Was that all it was? Was Steven a dumb teenage boy who simply had one sexual agenda?

That didn’t seem like Steven. He wasn’t like that. She needed to stop allowing her mother’s interpretations of the boy to invade her mind. Connie had her own sweet opinion on Steven and none of which matched up to whatever harsh comments her mother had made against the boy. 

She wanted to be with him and it had only been just over a day since she was sat on top of him passionately kissing him in the back of the Dondai. Connie stared at the counter inside of the coffee shop as she cleaned the surface. He was going to come through the door any minute and she just knew it. 

Connie didn’t want to share her issues with Lars or Sadie - luckily neither of them asked why Connie was looking so vacant. She had too much anxiety on her mind to concentrate on anything else. Every single time the bell on the top of the door sounded her eyes shot over to whatever customer had come through the door. 

One of them had to be Steven. 

The day continued to drag on and there was still no sign of him. 

Where was he? 

Connie was starting to get desperate. She had even skipped her lunch break, saving it for whenever Steven would have walked through the door. He didn’t. 

He didn’t come into the coffee shop all day. 

Connie felt somewhat hurt. In a way, she felt betrayed that he hadn't come through the door the moment that they had opened so that he could have seen her when she was at work. It wasn’t as if she was allowed to see him any other time. Where was he? Why did he not come to the coffee shop? 

Did Connie do something wrong? 

Connie couldn’t help but think about it the whole day, continuing to worry about what she may have said or done to have deserved him to have ignored her. If the roles were reversed she would have jumped at the chance to have gone to the coffee shop. A part of her was mad that he had actually obeyed her mother’s orders. 

Why? 

Connie thought that Steven was adventurous and different. At least that was how he made her feel. Not this time - Steven hadn’t even bothered to come and see her at the coffee shop. 

Connie stared at the phone she had been given. It was an outdated hand me down from her parents that contained only the essential contacts. There was nothing more to it than the ability to call and text. There was one problem though - it didn’t have Steven’s number in it. She wished she could have just texted him. She just wanted to make sure that he was okay and that he still wanted to see her. 

He still wanted to see her, right? 

She couldn’t have even begun to imagine what the texts he had sent to her phone included. What if they had mentioned something about breaking up? Were they even a couple? Were they in a relationship? 

They had been on a few dates. At least what they could have considered a date. They had spent quite a lot of time together too. Steven had even admitted that he liked her and she had responded with the same thing. 

She did like Steven. Connie wanted Steven to be her boyfriend - but that would have been impossible with everything that her mother had imposed. There was no way that something like that would have been allowed to happen. Even if all of it was for a stupid boy - she wouldn’t have minded one bit. 

She liked that boy. 

She lov-

Did she? It certainly felt how the movies had depicted it. He gave her butterflies when he was around, surely that was enough to prove it? 

Connie didn’t want to think into it too much. How was she supposed to love someone if she couldn’t be with them? 

That seemed like torture to her. Torture that she could have avoided. 

The next day when Connie went to work she tried not to think too much about Steven coming through the door and despite at least trying - it didn’t work. It was all she could think about. It cemented the idea inside of her mind that she did want to be with him. She wanted to be with him badly. 

She...loved him? 

No. 

Yes?

The bell on the top of the door rang and Connie’s eyes immediately diverted to the door where she noticed a boy in a black snapback, pink varsity jacket and a pair of sunglasses walk through. It was Steven. 

Steven Universe. 

Panic suddenly set in. Was this a test? What if her parents were watching? How could they have been watching? If she talked to him they may have been able to find out. Connie panicked as she teetered on the spot, unsure as to where to dash away to. 

“Hey, it’s Steven.” Sadie pointed out the obvious as she noticed him come through the door with his new look. He somehow managed to rock the sunglasses and snapback combo. 

“Sadie - I’m going on my break.” Connie took a deep breath inwards and informed Sadie of where she was about to go. 

“Woah, okay…” Sadie was shocked to hear Connie being so brash and direct, watching her drop a cloth on the side and move around the edge of the counter. 

Connie made her way around the counter and stood in the sight of Steven. Steven noticed her instantly. They stared at each other from the opposite side of the room, it felt strange for Connie to not be able to see his eyes under the sunglasses. 

Steven swallowed hard as he stepped towards the counter - the entrance in which only members of staff could enter through. Connie kept the hatch open, awaiting Steven. 

Steven didn’t say a single word as he stepped past Connie and walked through to the storeroom. Sadie watched them both walk past her in silence. What was going on? That wasn’t like either of them. Steven had never acted so quiet and Connie for one had never been so blunt. She had also never seen Steven in sunglasses - that was new. Were they having a fight?

Connie gently shut the door behind them, following Steven into the storeroom. He stopped in his tracks and turned around to face Connie. He gently removed the sunglasses only to reveal the mess of foundation that he had once again attempted to use as a way to cover up the black eye. It didn’t help. In fact, the poor application of makeup made it so much worse. 

Connie cringed slightly at the sight. It was no longer quite so swollen, but she could see how black and bruised it had become through the poorly applied makeup. She readjusted her apron as she stood in front of Steven, unsure what to say. 

“Um...hi.” Steven waved slightly as he spoke, tucking the sunglasses into his pocket. 

“You got your jacket back.” Connie commented, noticing the pink varsity jacket that she had been wearing the entirety of Sunday. 

“Yeah, your mom dropped it off at my dad’s car wash. You can have it ba-”

“Steven, I’m not supposed to be with you.” Connie was quick to cut him off. She wanted his jacket back - but she couldn’t. 

“Right...what does that mean exactly?” Steven scratched the back of his neck. He wasn’t quite sure what this ‘Steven ban’ entailed. 

“My parents don’t want me to hang out with you anymore.” Connie held onto herself, the words making her uncomfortable. She didn’t want this. 

“And you’re going to listen to them?” Steven cocked an eyebrow, unsure if he was about to be incredibly upset or not. 

“Yes...I mean...no, not exactly...well - it’s complicated.” Connie couldn’t bear to look at him, she just knew his eyes would have exhibited a great deal of pain. 

“Oh. D-does that mean you don’t want to see me anymore?” Steven couldn’t help but choke on his words. 

He had given Connie two days. He had given her parents two days to cool down before he tried anything. It took every ounce of his being not to go into the coffee shop the previous day - he had to figure out what he wanted to say. 

“No, I want to see you…”

“But you can’t?”

“Exactly.” 

“Oh…” 

They stood opposite each other, a good distance between them both. Steven thought about the plan he had inside of his mind, allowing his face to light up knowing that he could finally make the suggestion.

“What if I apologise to your parents? What if they see that I’m a good person? Do you think they would change their mind?” 

“They should probably be the ones apologising to you. They saw your texts to me.” Connie informed Steven. 

“My texts? Oh no...my texts.” Steven’s facial expression dropped dramatically as he stared at the ground. He bit down on his bottom lip before looking back at Connie. “Have you seen them?” 

“No. Why? What’s on them? What did you send to my parents?” Connie’s eyes widened, the panic suddenly setting in. What had he done? What had her parents seen from Steven that she hadn’t? 

“I just...I didn’t expect your parents to see them. Oh.” 

“What did you send?” Connie raised her voice, now slightly more desperate to know what he had sent to her the morning after they had made out. 

“I just sent a few texts about us...kissing. I made a few jokes. I mentioned Kevin and what happened and then I…” 

“Show me!” Connie demanded. Steven had never seen her be quite so direct before, his panic was set in motion as he nervously fumbled around in his pocket to grab his phone. 

It took him a moment to pull up the texts but immediately passed the phone over to Connie. Connie stared at the screen, reading through each and every one of the texts as Steven stood awkwardly opposite her. 

Connie was so confused reading the messages. They were stupid. They were incredibly stupid. An awful attempt at trying to be flirty through text, a recall back to their time in the back of his car, a mention of ping pong and then a somewhat beautiful ending where he mentioned how much she meant to him. She couldn’t deny the last bit was sweet...sickenly so. She couldn’t believe her parents had seen this. 

“Oh, Steven…” Connie placed her hand on her forehead, just below the Beach City Coffee branded cap that was sat on her head. 

“I’m sorry. I didn’t know that you weren’t going to see them.” Steven took off his snapback and began to play with the fabric between his thumbs and fingers. 

“You were there when I got grounded!”

“I’m-”

“Sorry. The sentiment was very sweet.” Connie pinched the bridge of her nose before sighing deeply. 

Steven felt guilty. Had he done something horribly wrong? It sure felt like it. 

They stood in silence for a moment, neither of them wanting to look at each other. They both felt incredibly awkward. Connie had thought about how much she wanted to be with Steven and yet now he was there in front of her she couldn’t help but feel as if maybe her parents were right about him after all. 

He was just some...boy.

Except, he wasn’t. 

“Can’t we just hang out without anyone knowing?” Steven suggested. He was desperate to come up with a solution to their problem that they had found themselves in. He didn’t want to have to give up everything that he had worked for with Connie just because her parents claimed that he wasn’t good enough. 

Connie stepped forward slightly, passing the phone back to Steven. Steven simply reached out to grab it without looking. 

“You want to sneak around?” Connie squinted slightly, she couldn’t say she was too fond of the idea. There was so much anxiety within her. She couldn’t risk her parents seeing them together. 

Steven tucked the phone into his pocket before placing the snapback back onto his head. He glanced around the room for a moment, a part of him trying so desperately not to say the words that were within him. 

Connie was certainly going to have something to say about this. 

“Well...yeah. Isn’t that kind of...hot?” Steven chewed his bottom lip, trying his hardest not to go red. 

“What?”

“Y’know...sneaking around. It’s hot?” Steven repeated. 

“I heard you the first time…” Connie flushed a shade of red. Where was all of this confidence coming from? 

“Oh.” Steven chuckled awkwardly before scratching the back of his neck. Was Connie okay with him saying something so forward like that? Was that...okay? 

There was still a rather noticeable distance between them both - neither of them wanting to step into each other’s personal space. It was the first time since they had met where they felt that strain of disconnect between them both. From the moment that Steven had walked into the coffee shop, it had felt as if he was so connected to Connie that she couldn’t have gotten away even if she tried. 

She didn’t want to try. This was not her choice. 

“The other night…” Connie’s voice was hoarse, but she needed to bring up what had happened between them. 

“This night?” Steven pointed towards his black eye that was poorly covered by the makeup. 

“Yeah...that one.” Connie half-smiled, feeling somewhat uncomfortable that he had used that as a reminder. It was still fresh within his memory. 

“I remember.” Steven smiled. He wasn’t smiling about the black eye - he was smiling about everything that happened up until the point in which they had pulled up in front of Connie’s house. 

“You said you liked me.” Connie couldn’t quite fathom what she wanted to say and what she wanted out of the conversation. It was something that they had to speak about. 

After seeing it again, but written out on the sloppy text messages that Steven had sent had given her chills down her spine. It was something that she didn’t want to admit right then and there. It seemed as if in the heat of the moment she had responded. What if Steven had just said them things because he was exactly what her mother thought of him? 

What if Steven had said them things because he was in fact a teenage boy with only one thing on his mind? Sex.

He wasn’t. Her mother was wrong and she had to keep telling herself that. Steven was much more than that and he had proven it time and time again. Steven was not on the pursuit of sex - he was on the pursuit of love. Steven was nothing more than a hopeless romantic and Connie had managed to fall into his hilariously plotted flirtatious traps time and time again. 

“You said you liked me too.” Steven echoed. He was right - she had said the same words back to him. 

That wasn’t a mistake. That was something that she did in fact want to say to him. She had wanted to say that to him for a while now, but there had never been the right time. Perhaps being so close to him in the back of his car was certainly the most perfect way to express that sheer desire? 

“I did.” Connie nodded. There was no use in denying it. He had heard her loud and clear. 

“D-did you mean it?” Steven cocked an eyebrow. A part of him also questioned whether or not Connie had said the words in the heat of the moment because he had trapped her with his own words. 

“Yeah…”

“So?”

“It makes it harder for me to listen to my parents.” Connie placed her hands together as she spoke, still unable to reconnect her eyes with Steven. She was embarrassed. 

Steven knew exactly what she was referring to. Steven was making it hard for Connie to decide whether or not she was going to continue to obey her parent's archaic ways of rule. Connie had found herself choosing between two things that she cared considerably about. 

Her parent’s respect or Steven. 

How was that something that she was able to choose between? Both of them had incredibly valid reasons for being something that she needed. 

“I’m sorry.” Steven felt guilty that it was his fault that she would have to choose between the two. He didn’t want that for her. It wasn’t fair. 

“N-no, it’s not your fault.” 

“I wish I could be a better person. Smarter. Intelligent like you. That way your parents wouldn’t mind if we were together.” Steven shrugged, his low self-esteem shining on the surface. 

“Steven, you don’t have to change for them. You’re perfect the way you are.” Connie felt awful that her parents had made him feel so worthless. They shouldn’t have done that. It was wrong of them to do so. 

“Perfect doesn’t seem good enough.” Steven sighed, completely deflated with the fact that would have to have gone above and beyond to win over Connie’s parents. It was never going to work. He would never have been good enough. 

“They just...they have this perfect plan all lined up for me. They want me to go to college, ace every exam and lead my life as a mindless zombie controlled by social studies. I mean, I’m sure they’d warm up to you if they knew you - but they wouldn’t give you the chance.” Connie took a step closer to Steven, sadness in her expression. 

“Is there anything I can do?” 

“Just be you. You don’t have to win them over - you’ve already won me over and that’s all that matters.” Connie laughed slightly, she couldn’t help but say the words. 

Steven’s heart began to pound. She really did like him and when she had said it in the back of the car she really had meant it the way that he did. 

“That’s...good.” Steven looked away shyly as he noticed her step forward once more. 

Connie made sure to get a good look at Steven for the first time since he walked into the coffee shop not too long ago. They hadn’t quite locked eyes as they usually did when it came to being together. There was an awkwardness between them that they couldn’t have quite put their finger on. It was as if they shouldn’t have really been together. It felt forbidden. 

Connie noticed the difference in the skin tone of the makeup that he had on his face. It truly was a mess - but she didn’t want to judge. It was clear he had made an effort, given up and decided on going for the sunglasses instead to cover up his injury. 

Connie’s eyes diverted to a section on his neck in which there also looked to be a patch of makeup. Her eyes widened at the sight. 

“W-what’s that?” Connie pointed up at Steven’s neck. 

Steven glanced over his shoulder before realising what she was referring to. He grabbed a hold of his neck and laughed awkwardly, covering the makeup. 

“Oh...um...I think you kissed me a little bit too hard.” Steven suddenly blushed harder than he had done before. He didn’t want to admit how much he had loved the feeling of her lips pressed against his neck. Now was not the appropriate time to mention it. 

“Oh no...have my parents seen that?” Connie wanted to drop dead with embarrassment. 

“Yeah…”

“What?”

“I don’t think my dad wasn’t too impressed either. I mean, I don’t mind. Well, I didn’t mind. I didn’t expect the bruise. I-it’s fine.” Steven couldn’t help but continue to laugh awkwardly. He wasn’t sure how else to handle the situation. 

No wonder her parents had assumed they had been having sex. How could Steven have let them see that? Admittedly, he probably wasn’t aware that it was there. She certainly hadn’t noticed it in the car when they were driving back, but with the darkness mixed with her deep feelings for the boy, it was pretty hard to concentrate. 

“We’re in so much trouble.” Connie pressed her fingers against her temple. 

“We’re already in trouble.” 

“That doesn't make it any better!” Connie suddenly didn’t enjoy the idea of disobeying her parents. 

Steven was beyond confused. There were so many emotions that Connie was exhibiting that he wasn’t quite sure how to respond. She looked at him so lovingly only for the panic to set in, suddenly changing it for anger. Maybe Connie should have taken a day to think through her emotions just as Steven had done. 

“It’s okay.”

“It’s not okay, Steven! It’s…”

“It doesn’t matter. They already know and it’s in the past. It’s going to be okay.” Steven shook his head. It didn’t matter in the slightest, it was already over. Something he had learnt whilst he was in therapy was to only try and affect the things that he had control over. Connie no longer had control over her parents finding out about her relationship - but that didn’t mean she had to worry about it now. It wasn’t worth it. It had already happened. 

“It’s just...embarrassing. Not because of you, just…” Connie didn’t quite know how to explain the way in which she felt about it. 

“You don’t want your parents to know that you’re really good at kissing?” Steven smirked, unable to control himself. 

“Well, yeah - that’s kind of weird.” 

“It is weird.” 

“I bet you feel the same way about your dad and your aunts.” 

“It’s kind of weird, but they’re pretty used to my antics by now.” Steven shrugged with a smile. 

“You’re pretty good at the whole kissing thing too - y’know?” Connie spoke as a smirk crawled up one side of her face. 

“Yeah?” Steven self consciously licked his lips. 

Connie gently grabbed onto Steven’s hands as they finally met eyes in the same way that they always did. It felt so natural. Steven couldn’t quite see her the same way in which he used to with his black eye, it was still swollen enough to inhibit his vision. It didn’t matter - she was still beautiful. 

“Maybe...you could come to the coffee shop a little more often? But only on my breaks though, I don’t want to get distracted from work.” Connie stepped even closer towards Steven, this time completely invading his personal space. 

“I can do that.” 

“I’ll be ungrounded next week - maybe we could hang out then?” 

“Won’t you get in trouble?” 

Connie was afraid. Afraid that being with Steven would mean her parents would hate her, she didn’t want to lose their trust. Yet, she was also terrified of losing Steven. He had been the best thing to happen to her in a long time and she didn’t want to let that go no matter how much her parents disapproved. 

“Not if they never find out.” Connie finally smirked. 

Perhaps sneaking around was as ‘hot’ as Steven claimed? It sure felt as if she was doing something that she certainly shouldn’t have been doing. For the first time in her life, she felt in control. Connie had so much power over the situation. She could have done whatever she wanted to do. 

If she wanted to be with Steven she was going to be with Steven. Not even her parents could have prevented that. 

“What if they do?” Steven’s eyebrows dropped with concern. 

“I thought just a moment ago you said that sneaking around was hot?”

“Well...yeah - it is. I just...what if we get caught? What is your mom going to do to me?” 

Priyanka was a scary woman. Steven had every right to be afraid. 

“We won’t.” 

“What if I just - talk to your parents? I know you said it was a bad idea, but it isn’t terrible. It’s a lot less painful than sneaking around and being terrified your parents are going to come around the corner every time we’re together. Do you really want that?” Steven squeezed Connie’s hands. 

“No, I don’t - but you can’t reason with my parents.” 

“How about dinner? What if you have me around for dinner? We could go to a restaurant! I-I could prove that I’m not who they think I am. I know I can be better.” Steven wasn’t going to back down. It wasn’t just about sneaking around behind their parents back. It was about Steven proving that he was something more. 

Steven had a pretty rough year the previous summer and he was determined to make that change this year. He didn’t want things to go as badly as they did once before. He didn’t want to be in that place again. 

Steven had to take control of situations that he wanted to be in. He had to make sure that he was the person steering the ship. He had to seek happiness for his own mental wellbeing. 

“Steven…” Connie didn’t quite know what to say when it came to trying to get Steven to back down out of something. She really didn’t want to make the request to her parents. 

“We can’t hide forever.” Steven pouted. It was true and Connie knew it. She knew that they couldn’t hide behind themselves forever and it would have been impossible to stay away from her parent’s knowledge.

“I’ll try.” Connie sighed - it was either going for Steven’s suggestion or never being able to see him again. 

“Okay. I’ll...dress up nicely!” Steven smiled. He had to win her parents over. It was the only way. 

“Well, that’ll make a change.” Connie giggled as she tapped the bill of the snapback, pushing it down slightly. 

“Hey!” Steven laughed as he grabbed a hold of Connie as she attempted to get away. He wasn’t going to let her get away with that. 

Steven pushed down on her work cap as he held her - he wasn’t going to sit back and watch her bully him like this. It was unacceptable. 

Connie chuckled as the cap pushed past her eyes, Steven's hands still wrapped around her waist. He pulled her as close as possible, gently lifting her cap so that he could once again see her eyes. 

“So, if we do have a fancy dinner party - no snapback?” Steven tilted his head. 

“Nope. No snapback!” Connie smiled before pushing his cap back down past his eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to say that this morning I woke up the happiest person on the planet earth. I refreshed the page before I went to bed, woke up and WOAH - 9 messages in my inbox???? 
> 
> I love you guys. Thank you. I was beyond happy and I couldn't have asked for anything more. You are all so wonderful and kind and trust me when I say, I appreciate every single comment that people leave. It really is the food for writers and just by getting them comments, it encouraged me to write another two chapters (yeah, I know!). THANK YOU!!!! <3333


	19. White Chocolate Mocha

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven Universe is a pretty strange kid, but maybe the Maheswaran's just need to give him a chance?

“Please, Mom!”

“You are not inviting that boy over.” 

“You’re not listening to me. You won’t even give him a chance.” 

“I’m not having this discussion with you, Connie.” 

“Well, if you won’t invite him round to the house could we at least go out for a meal together? You never take any interest in my friends. Please, Mom. He’s not like what you think.” 

“What am I supposed to think? He shows up outside our house past midnight after you attend a house party together? He’s a bad influence. He had gotten into a fight!”

“How can you judge him like that when you’ve never even met him?” 

“I did meet him and I made my judgments.” 

“Mom, please! I'm sure he really wants to make up for his behaviour.”

“Well, he should have thought about that before he took my sixteen-year-old daughter to a house party.” 

“I agreed to go! It wasn’t all down to Steven. I decided that I wanted to go, so I did. I can make my own choices, I wasn’t just blindly led into the party.” 

“Hm. I still very much disagree with his attitude.” 

“Give him a chance, Mom. He’s not a bad person and I’m sure he would really like to make it up to you and dad.” 

Priyanka stood in the kitchen as she folded over her arms. She certainly didn’t want this Steven Universe boy inside of her house and definitely didn’t want him anywhere near her daughter’s heart. Although, it did seem as if Connie was incredibly passionate about seeing the boy again. 

As much as Priyanka didn’t want to admit it, she too had fallen for boys throughout the summer before. Sweet summer romances that meant little to nothing. Perhaps it was a maternal instinct to protect her daughter from boys who would only break her heart, or perhaps it was the fact it was someone with a name like 'Steven Universe'? Either way, it wasn’t something that she truly wanted to touch upon. 

Steven didn’t seem like a bad kid, but Priyanka wasn’t going to allow him to get inside of her daughter’s head. She didn’t trust him one bit. Especially not after seeing him the way that she did. There was no reason for her to trust him. 

“One dinner.”

“What? Really?” Connie’s expression changed dramatically. There was no way that her mother had agreed to it. 

“If he’s even a minute late or steps out of line I won’t hesitate to leave. I can see that you care about him a lot.” Priyanka really didn’t want to change her mind on the boy. There was no way that she wanted the boy anywhere near her daughter - no matter how nice he was. 

She didn’t want to have to change her opinions. 

“Thank you! Thank you, Mom!” Connie threw her hands around her mother, the first time that they had even been remotely close since Priyanka had grounded her. 

Priyanka welcomed the hug from her daughter. It surprised her to see how happy that meeting the request would make Connie. Perhaps going out for dinner with the Universe boy wouldn’t have been too much hassle? If it meant that Connie would continue to focus on her work and not sulk around the house all day then maybe it wouldn’t have been such a bad thing to entertain it for a while. 

“You can use your phone to call him once I have booked us a table. Once. That’s it. No texting. No talking about anything other than this - else I will cancel it.” Priyanka took a deep breath as she looked down at her daughter. 

Connie didn’t care about the requirements. Her mother had said yes! That was enough for her, she couldn’t wait for Steven to accept the request. 

Luckily, Steven welcomed the request with open arms. He didn’t quite expect to be as happy as he was when he near enough cheered. He was going to be able to prove himself to Connie’s parents. 

He was…

He was excited. He was nervous. 

They already thought poorly of him...could this have been any worse? He didn’t want to disappoint them and he really didn’t want to disappoint Connie. 

It had been a week since the party at Buck’s and it had certainly been a strange week not being able to speak to Connie as much as he had been getting used to. There had been no text conversations and certainly no phone calls - other than the one inviting him out on the Saturday for a meal with her parents at a local restaurant. 

He had also been over to the coffee shop a couple of times when she had been on her break. It had been a little different than before and Lars couldn’t help but scowl at Steven whenever he went into the storeroom with Connie. Sadie had awkwardly walked in on what looked to be a kiss at one point before spinning on her heel and exiting swiftly. 

Lars or Sadie certainly wouldn’t have said anything about their relationship to anyone. 

Steven spent a couple of hours of his time attempting to get ready to go out. He made sure to make himself as smart as he possibly could be. If he was going to win over Connie’s parents he needed to make sure that he was able to present himself well. 

He spent extra time ironing his white shirt and blazer - even taking the time out of his day to shine his dress shoes. Steven was so prepared to make sure that he was as smart as possible. There were so many ways in which he felt as if he had disappointed the Maheswarans - but it seemed as if they had initially judged him based on his appearance. 

Pearl had reluctantly helped him with the makeup to assist with covering up his black eye. She didn’t help him cover up the hickey, so Steven did that himself. The swelling had gone down and after a week was simply now a bruise that day by day was changing colour. It felt weird for Steven to see it in the mirror every single day as if it had suddenly become a part of him that would never disappear. 

Steven made sure to leave the snapback at home as he debated whether or not to wear a tie. He wanted to be smart, but felt as if having a tie would make it look as if he was more prepared to go to a funeral rather than a meal out with his girlfr-

Date? 

Girlfriend? 

They still hadn’t got to that part yet. It seemed as if Connie’s parents had gotten in the way of everything logistically speaking too. They would have to have the discussion another time. 

Steven practically drowned himself in aftershave before grabbing his keys off the side. Despite being a little bit nervous, his dress wear had given him a spark of confidence that he didn’t quite have before. His hair was incredibly fluffy and stood up tall, suiting his outfit as best as possible. 

Was he a little bit overdressed? Possibly - but he was hoping that it wouldn’t have been that much of an issue. They were going to The Crab Shack, a restaurant just outside of town. It wasn’t quite considered a fancy restaurant, but formal wear was always welcomed. 

Steven wanted to try. He stopped off at a local shop in town to purchase a bouquet of flowers. As much as he didn’t have much skill when it came to being someone that he thought Connie’s parents would be pleased with he didn’t want to disappoint them. He wanted to impress them in ways that nobody had ever impressed them before. 

At least nobody that he believed Connie was interested in. If he was going to be her first boyfriend he wanted to make an effort and set a standard that not even the son of a rich billionaire that they eventually wanted to marry Connie off could meet. He was going to blow their socks off. 

Steven parked on the opposite side of the restaurant parking lot from the entrance. He certainly didn’t want to be late so found himself rocking up about thirty minutes earlier than they had already planned. 

Steven stepped out of his car and made his way to the front of the restaurant holding the beautiful bouquet of flowers in his arms. He stood by the doors and waited patiently for them to arrive. His stomach was churning slightly at the idea of trying to be cool, calm and collected. How was he supposed to be any of these things when he quite clearly wasn’t?

Steven had never seen himself as much of an actor and he certainly wasn’t very good at lying. He didn’t want to have to lie to her parents, but it seemed as if in some cases that he may have had to. What if they brought up school? Was he just supposed to tell them that he had only been homeschooled? What would they have thought of that? 

His plans for college? He didn’t have any. He wasn’t going to go to college. 

Steven suddenly began to panic at the possible outcomes of the evening. Connie had told him to be himself and yet being himself was the hardest thing possible. He wasn’t exactly someone that Connie would have been proud of. Except - he was. Connie liked him despite all of his flaws.

He had plenty of flaws and yet Connie never really saw them. They were things that he held deep within himself. 

Steven couldn’t help but pace outside the front of the restaurant as he anxiously chewed the inside of his bottom lip. He was convinced he could have chewed through if he became any more nervous. It wasn’t fair - he shouldn’t have felt this way. He needed to be confident. 

“Steven, we're so glad that you could make it!” Steven turned his head to see a familiar face. It was Connie and stood behind her were her glowering parents who looked just as scary as they had done last weekend. 

Steven gulped at the sight, standing up straight the best he could. 

“G-good evening, Dr and Mr Maheswaran. These are for you.” Steven’s hands shook nervously as he handed the mixed bouquet of flowers over to Priyanka. Connie smiled at the gesture, she hadn’t quite expected him to be quite the gentleman. 

Steven looked...fantastic. Handsome. Connie had never seen him dressed so smartly and it was certainly a change from his usual attire. Connie, on the other hand, was wearing a beautiful blue dress that Steven tried his hardest not to admire amongst her parents. He knew that staring too long could have been considered rude - especially at their daughter. 

“These are very pretty. Thank you.” Priyanka awkwardly accepted the gift. She very much appreciated the gesture. That was certainly one point to team Universe. 

“Should we head on inside?” Doug suggested as he pointed to the door. Everyone took the hint and decided to make their way towards the entrance. 

Steven and Connie walked side by side in front of Connie’s parents. There was a sudden urge in Steven to request for her to hold his hand, but he knew any kind of physical contact would have been deeply frowned upon by her parents. Steven glanced over slightly to Connie and smiled, she smiled back for reassurance. Connie had every bit of confidence that he would ace the time with her parents. 

Once inside of the restaurant Doug repeated his name for the reservation and they were eventually led over to a table that was positioned by the window. Connie sat opposite her dad, but beside Steven. That left Steven sitting opposite Priyanka with her disapproving looks. Steven’s leg shook anxiously as he smiled back trying his hardest not to sweat under the pressure. 

“So, Steven - how old did you say you were?” Doug questioned, attempting to start a conversation. 

“Seventeen. Well, eighteen next month.” Steven smiled, that seemed like a pretty easy start to a long evening of interrogation. 

Connie was unaware that he was going to be eighteen so soon. She was going to be turning seventeen in November, but that seemed so long away. Steven was going to be an...adult. 

“Right. The big eighteen. Got any birthday plans?” 

“No. I-I usually just spend it with my family.” Steven gripped onto the edge of the table as he spoke. Connie quickly noticed his awkwardness. 

“Are you going to be going to college this year?” Priyanka asked, bringing a much harder question to the table. 

Steven gently tapped his fingers against the table, formulating a suitable response within his mind. 

“I haven’t really thought about it. I’m not a very academic person.” Steven chuckled anxiously, being blunt and truthful about his education. 

“Steven was homeschooled.” Connie added, attempting to remove some of the pressure away from Steven who was now sweating in his chair. 

“Hm. Are you hoping to follow the same career path as your father in the future?” Priyanka placed her hands together and leant her elbows on the table. A rockstar was not a viable career and she had seen the carwash when dropping off Steven’s jacket back to his father. Sure, it was a well-structured business. But it wasn't a career as a lawyer or businessman. 

“The carwash?” 

“A ‘rockstar’, Mr Universe.” Priyanka air quoted with her fingers. 

“N-no, I don’t think so. I can play a lot of instruments, but I don’t think I would pursue a career in music. It’s just a hobby.” Steven shrugged. 

“Instruments? What do you play?” Doug suddenly became interested in the conversation. 

“Oh, lots of them! I can play ukulele, guitar, bass, drums and I know a few songs on the piano.” Steven began to use his fingers to count out all of the instruments he knew he could play, suddenly gaining confidence in his speech as he spoke about something that he knew for once. 

Connie was unaware that Steven had so much talent when it came to music. She had assumed that with his dad being a touring musician that he knew how to play an instrument, perhaps a guitar, but she was incredibly impressed to hear that he could play such a vast array of musical devices. 

Priyanka was shocked to hear about Steven’s talents. Although there wasn’t much academic knowledge on the table it seemed as if Steven was smart in other areas of expertise. Expertise in which Priyanka believed he couldn’t have achieved a viable career, but at least it was something. 

“Connie plays the violin, she’s very good. Aren’t you, honey?” Doug nodded over to Connie who couldn’t help but blush. 

“You play violin?” Steven was quick to turn in his seat, shocked by this newfound revelation. 

“A little...” Connie spoke shyly. 

“Woah, that’s amazing. I love the violin, it’s so pretty!” Steven’s face lit up like a child. Considering he had spoken about his musical background with Connie in the past he was surprised that she hadn’t bought up her ability to play the violin. He would have been offended by it if he had spoken about his ability to play instruments as well. Since he hadn’t spoken about it at all - he had no grounds to stand on. 

“Do you have a favourite violin piece?” Priyanka asked, knowing that it would have been the kind of question that Steven may have slipped up on. 

“Oh, that’s easy - It’s The Lark Ascending by Vaughan Williams.” Steven happily stated, knowing that this was his area of expertise. 

Doug’s jaw dropped slightly - suddenly Steven had become a man of culture. Priyanka’s eyes widened, incredibly impressed by Steven’s knowledge of the arts. He wasn’t quite some kid in a hoodie anymore. Priyanka somewhat saw slightly past his black eye. 

Connie copied her father’s expression, incredibly surprised by Steven’s knowledge and incredibly quick answer. It wasn’t as if she had ever clocked him as the sort of guy who listened to violin pieces in his spare time. She exchanged glances with her father, neither of them quite believing what they had just heard. 

“I love that piece…” Connie let out a long sigh as she spoke. It was amazing to hear the words come out of Steven’s mouth. Suddenly he had gotten vastly more attractive - sharing the love of one of her most valued classical music pieces. 

“Well, that was unexpected.” Priyanka somewhat mumbled under her breath. 

Steven wasn’t quite sure why everyone’s response had been so bizarre to him simply stating a fact. He had a funny feeling it had something to do with their vague and vastly wrong perception of him. 

“My aunt Pearl listens to a lot of classical music. It’s...always on in the house.” Steven laughed, he was certain he had just scored another point with her parents. 

“Connie mentioned that you live with your aunts.” Priyanka bought up yet another subject to discuss. 

“Yeah, I live with my aunt Amethyst, Pearl and Garnet. They’re all really cool.” Steven smiled, proud to speak about the women that had raised him throughout his life. At least, the bits of his life that he somewhat wanted to keep ahold of the memories of. 

“And your mother?” 

Steven’s expression dropped to a slight frown, he panicked slightly before internally calming himself. He didn’t like people bringing up his mom in conversation - it was an incredibly sensitive subject for him. 

“Um...she’s no longer with us.” Steven poked his fingers together as he glanced down. A sudden wave of depression sweeping over the table of four. 

“Oh...I’m very sorry to hear that.” Priyanka furrowed her eyebrows with sympathy. Suddenly her heart was aching for the boy. Nobody should have to live without their mother, such an important person in people’s lives. She hurt hearing the pain in his voice. 

“I-It’s okay. I didn’t get to know her, but I’m sure she would have been just as good of a mother as you are to Connie.” Steven half-smiled. A part of him was sad to see that sometimes Connie’s relationship with her mother was bumpy. Despite him being a little scared of Priyanka, he would have loved to have a mother like her. 

Steven was lucky that he had such fantastic aunts who had become such amazing maternal figures in his life. 

“T-that’s very sweet of you, Steven.” Priyanka was taken back by his kind words. 

Connie was sitting beside him internally screaming. Reel it in, Steven. Reel it in. 

He shouldn’t have to use sympathy to win Priyanka over, it certainly wasn’t about that. Everything that he had said was true and he meant it from the bottom of his heart. Priyanka was a good mother, she may have been strict - but she was strict for a reason. Steven respected that. Priyanka cared for her daughter. 

Steven sat in the chair the whole night as the Maheswaran family threw questions around the table. Most of them were centric to him and he was getting rather used to being interrogated. As the food was brought to the table, Steven had finally found the courage to speak about other things within his life. For the first time ever it felt as if he could have an adult conversation where adults actually wanted to listen to what he had to say. That was incredibly surprising coming from Connie’s parents. Out of everyone in existence he certainly hadn’t expected that to come from them. 

They were incredibly mature about everything they spoke about. Connie couldn’t stop smiling, knowing that every single word that he spilt was winning them over. Something that she originally believed would have been an impossible task. Suddenly, it didn’t quite seem like a pipedream for Steven to have been her boyfriend. That was all she wanted. 

It wasn’t about gaining her parent's approval - but that certainly would have helped. Regardless of what they thought of him, she knew that she couldn’t stay away. She liked his company more than words could have expressed and couldn’t wait to spend more time together. Her parent's approval wouldn’t have stopped any of that, but it would have made it easier. 

A part of Steven felt guilty, for everything that had happened in his past he was so grateful to have been around such a loving family. Although they seemed strict, Doug made quite a lot of jokes which made Steven laugh and they had bonded together without question, Steven questioned Priyanka’s parenting but knew there was always reasoning behind it. The way in which Pearl scowled him was similar to Priyanka’s strict parenting and he respected that greatly. 

Why did he feel guilty? Was he having a better time with Connie’s family than he did with his own? Because his dad and aunts would rarely ever get together to have a family meal? It wasn’t as if his aunts would have sat down together anyway, they all worked with such various schedules. There was no way of getting them all together anyway. 

He felt guilty because he was jealous. He was jealous of Connie’s nuclear family. 

They were normal. A normal family that cared so much about their daughter and her wellbeing that they wanted to scope out the boy who had suddenly fallen into her life without a moment’s notice. It wasn’t because they were bad people. 

They cared. 

Although he was shouted at by his dad in regards to being taken home from Connie’s the previous week - there had been no follow up. Steven hadn’t even been grounded in the same way in which Connie had. He still had every privilege that he had prior to the party and he couldn’t help but feel as if he had done so much more wrong than Connie. Why did she deserve to be punished? 

Steven knew that his aunts and dad cared about him - but not in the same kind of way that Connie’s parents cared about her. It was a different kind of love, built on nurturing her growth as a person. Steven had never had that before in his life. It was always about fixing him or doing something for him that they believed was the best option, but in reality, was just to feed an ulterior motive. 

“It was really good to see you, Steven.” Connie smiled as they stood out in the parking lot together. Of course, it was fantastic to have seen Steven. It hurt knowing that she couldn’t have been with him in the same way that she was when her parents weren’t shadowing her. It felt awkward knowing that no matter what she said they could hear her and be part of the conversation. 

Although, it didn’t seem to have been quite so awkward as reading Steven’s texts. Connie was still incredibly embarrassed. 

Steven scratched the back of his neck as he glanced up towards both Doug and Priyanka. They both stared down at him in anticipation, awaiting some kind of response. 

“Thank you for inviting me out. It was nice to meet you both, y’know...for real this time. I’m really sorry about last weekend. It was never my intention to make anyone feel uncomfortable with my actions. I never wanted to lose your trust before getting to know you. I understand what I did was wrong and I promise to never make the same mistakes again. Your daughter is very important to me and I really wouldn’t want to hurt her - or her parents for that matter. I hope that...you can forgive me.” Steven glanced away as he spoke, realising quite how difficult it was to provide them with eye contact when they were both staring down at him with menacing looks. 

Connie wanted to scream. If that didn’t win over her mother then nothing would. 

“Thank you, Steven. That was an incredibly mature response. I’m glad that you could join us for dinner this evening, I hope that you drive home safely.” Priyanka managed half a smile as she looked down at the boy, holding the bouquet of flowers that he had gotten her in her arms. 

“Thank you, Dr Maheswaran! Bye Connie!” Steven smiled up at Priyanka, his heart skipping a beat with what sounded like her approval. 

Steven twisted on his heel before throwing his arms around Connie in excitement as a way to say goodbye. 

“Bye Steven.” Connie held him tightly. “You were amazing.” She whispered as quietly as possible into his ear. Steven couldn’t help himself but grin widely. 

Suddenly there was a hand that touched both of their shoulders, pulling them apart. 

“That’s it. That’s enough - c’mon now, it’s getting late.” Doug grumbled as he practically pulled the boy away from his daughter with a frown. 

Steven waved goodbye and went back to his car, thrilled with how the entire evening had gone. He glanced at himself in the mirror and smiled - the makeup had stayed on his eye the whole night! Pearl had done a fantastic job. 

Connie clambered into the back seat of her dad’s car and leant on the window, covering her mouth to hide her huge grin. Her mother and father made their way into the vehicle and exchanged quick glances before pulling away from the restaurant. 

Connie couldn’t hold in her curiosity any longer. 

“So, what did you think of Steven?” She asked, nervous for the response. 

“Well, he’s certainly not what I...had expected.” Priyanka pressed her lips into a thin line. 

“So...you were wrong about him?” Connie couldn’t help but grin smugly as she cocked an eyebrow. 

“Don’t push it.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Parental approval? Tick?????????
> 
> You guys are so so kind to me and it warms my heart. I am indeed staying hydrated, the fact of the matter is I actually work a full-time job - I just spent the rest of my spare time writing hahaha. Not only that but when I do write, I write INCREDIBLY quickly. I'm not good at a lot of things in life, but trust me when I tell you that I am pretty skilled in typing and writing. I am proud of what I write, trash or not. Thank you for all of the comments reassuring this. <3


	20. Matcha Lemonade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for Steven and Connie to 'DTR'. If you're not a cool, hip person as I am, then I am here to inform you that means 'define the relationship'. 
> 
> Cool, right? 
> 
> It's also time for yet another date now that they are no longer ruled by the Maheswaran parents - that means a trip to the arcade!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I very much love this chapter...

“Y’know...I think it was the violin thing that really won them over. You never told me about that!” Connie giggled as she sat on a bench beside Steven that was positioned opposite the beach.

“You never told me you played violin.” Steven countered. 

“Okay, well - it’s not as if I do it much. You never said anything about the instruments you play. How many were there? Like…” Connie counted on her fingers. “Five?” 

“Yeah, that sounds about right.” Steven grinned, a deep sense of relief within him that he had finally managed to win Connie’s parents over enough for them to be able to hang out with one another without having to look over their shoulders. 

“Your birthday’s next month? When?” Connie suddenly remembered, curious to know. 

“The fifteenth.” 

“Oh, yeah - you’re totally a Leo.” Connie snorted.

“I have very basic knowledge of what that means and I am incredibly okay with that.” Steven smiled back, astrology wasn’t his strong point, but it was certainly something he had found himself curious about in the past. 

Connie sighed with a smile, leaning back on the bench to a more relaxing seating position. Connie found herself with her head resting on Steven’s shoulder with their fingers threaded together as they stared out at the ocean before them. It was...nice. 

As much as they weren’t quite the couple to show public displays of affection with Connie’s parents sealing Steven’s approval (kind of) - they wanted to flaunt their new relationship. Something that despite everything that had been going on was something that they were still yet to define. 

Connie had been ungrounded and was given her phone back - after a week just as her parents had stated. As much as they didn’t want Connie hanging out with Steven for the wrong reasons it seemed as if the strange boy made her incredibly happy. They didn’t want to deny her daughter that happiness that she needed. That would have been incredibly unfair. 

It did take them a while to come around to the idea that the bizarre Steven Universe boy wanted to date their daughter. Connie shouldn’t have been dating - she was sixteen. Connie should have been studying. 

Although, there was a promise that Connie made in regard to lying to her parents. It seemed as if Steven was an incredibly responsible young man despite their first encounter. If Connie did want to go out she needed to make sure that she wasn’t going to lie about it. As much as they didn’t want her to be up to any kind of rebellious activity, they also wanted her to be safe. If she was going to be home late, they needed to know. 

Connie agreed. It wasn’t worth arguing with them. 

That also meant that if she was going to be spending the day with Steven, she would need to inform them. Which, on that day was exactly what she had done. Luckily, she didn’t have to go into work that day which meant that she had the whole day to herself - with Steven. 

It was the first time that they had spent the whole day together, usually spending time with one another in thirty-minute intervals on Connie’s break or what seemed to be evenings out. 

“This is really nice.” Connie pressed her cheek slightly harder against Steven’s shoulder to make sure that he knew she was there. Of course he knew - he hadn’t stopped thinking about her. 

“Hmm.” Steven hummed as he readjusted his cap and stared up at the sky. For the first time since Kevin had punched him in the face he hadn’t been so embarrassed to go outside of the house without foundation smudged around his eye. 

Although the bruising hadn’t gone down completely, it had settled enough to not make people look away in horror whenever they noticed it on his face. Sure, the bruising was still there - but it certainly wasn’t going to draw as much attention as it previously did. 

“What do you want to do for the rest of the day?” Connie questioned as she began to draw circles on the top of his hand with her thumb. 

“Um...this?” Steven chuckled. He would have quite happily sat on the bench all day with Connie practically cuddled up to him. 

“I mean...other than this.” 

“We could go and get coffee?” 

Connie immediately sat up and looked at Steven. Steven lifted his head and stared at Connie in confusion. Did he say something wrong?

“Y-you want to go to the coffee shop?” Connie sniggered, trying her hardest not to burst out laughing. 

“Well, they do good coffee. My favourite barista isn’t working today though...” Steven shrugged before closing his eyes and looking away with a pout. 

Yes, Steven did mean it as a serious suggestion. Why wouldn’t he have wanted to go to the coffee shop? That was all he practically knew. 

Connie blushed at his comment, squeezing onto his hand. He was adorable - despite half of his attempts at flirtation being the butt end of a terrible joke. 

“That’s a shame.” Connie played along. 

“Yeah, she’s really good at making coffee. Plus, she’s super pretty. You’d like her.” Steven opened one eye as he looked back at Connie who was trying her hardest not to accidentally push her smirk into a grin. 

“Really?” 

“Oh yeah - she's the prettiest girl you’ve ever seen. Beautiful.” Steven finally opened both his eyes, no longer keeping up his act of pouting. He smiled at Connie, unable to hold it in any longer. 

“Weird. I’ve never seen her there before.” 

“Gasp! You must have, she’s there all the time. Looks really cute in a cap and apron too. I don’t know what her name is though.” Steven tilted his head, attempting to be as sweet as possible. He was winning. Connie was melting in his presence. 

“I think her name might be Sadie...” Connie snorted, suddenly unable to control her laughter. 

“Wait- what? No!” Steven began to panic, his expression dropping like a ton of bricks. “It’s you! I’m talking about you!” 

“Calm down! I’m messing with you!” Connie laughed uncontrollably, the look on Steven’s face had been priceless. 

“Oh…right.” Steven breathed a deep sigh of relief, he used his free hand to rub his hand against his forehead. He really did work himself into a panic. 

“Anyway, I think now I remember that I’ve spoken to that barista before. She always talks about this cute dork in a snapback who comes in and orders drinks unsuitable for human consumption.” Connie copied his previous action of tilting his head before flicking the peak of his cap. 

“Hey! I haven’t ordered anything...weird since I met you.” Steven attempted to defend his choice of sugary beverage. 

“Did you really drink those? Sadie told me some of the weird combinations of syrups you’d had in the past. It made me feel sick.” Connie furrowed her eyebrows, genuinely curious to hear about his reasoning behind the sickening drinks. 

Steven glanced away for a moment, it wasn’t exactly something that he wanted to share. He wasn’t particularly proud of ordering the drinks. 

“Well...I never really drank them. At least not all of it.” 

“You didn’t drink them?”

“No, I just - it’s complicated. They just gave me company when I needed a distraction. What’s more distracting than a stomach ache?” Steven let out a small huff as he spoke, he sat up and leant forward, removing his hand away from Connie. 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to bring it up.” Connie could quite clearly see the upset that the subject bought him. 

“It’s okay. I…” 

What’s more distracting than a girl who he had fallen head over heels for? Why would someone need stomach aches when she gave him butterflies? He didn’t need the awful drinks to counteract and distract him from his own mental pain when Connie was there. 

“Steven?” Connie spoke softly as she leant forward, noticing his instant disconnect. 

Steven had suddenly been overrun with emotions. Mental health wasn’t fair one bit, he couldn’t control his emotions when it came to any of it. One moment he was laughing and then the simple mention of something that meant a lot to him caused everything to crash back down to earth in a violent display. 

“I’m sorry. I-I’m fine. Let’s just-” 

“Steven...you’re crying.” Connie noticed as he turned toward her. 

“I’m okay. Really.” Steven’s bottom lip trembled as he attempted a smile. He wiped his eyes and forced a smile once more. 

“You don’t have to hide your emotions. It’s okay to cry. It’s okay to speak about the things that make you feel bad. You don’t even have to pay me to listen!” Connie tilted her head once more, reaching up and using her thumb to wipe one of his tears away. 

Steven genuinely smiled at her reference to the therapist he had mentioned one of the first times they had spoken. 

“I well...I had a pretty bad year last year. This year suddenly seems to have gotten so much better and I’m terrified that I’m going to mess that up.” Steven glanced off to the side as Connie didn’t hesitate to take a hold of both his hands. 

Connie stayed silent as she took the time to listen to Steven. 

“I’m not very good at controlling my emotions. It’s pretty difficult. K-Kevin, he mentioned some things about my Mom and it upset me. I shouldn’t have gotten angry, but Kevin was only defending himself when he punched me. I pushed him first out of anger. I-I didn’t want to speak about it, but it’s been on my mind a lot. Then all the stuff happened with your parents and it was all…” 

“A bit too much all at once?”

“Yeah...a little.” 

“Kevin doesn’t deserve your sympathy. He’s awful.” 

“I kind of wish I’d pushed harder.” Steven snorted slightly, he wasn’t usually a violent person, but Kevin certainly enlightened a rage never quite seen before. 

“Me too.” Connie smiled, suddenly sharing a strange bond relating to their disliking of another. 

Steven smiled at Connie, his pain within himself slowly sliding away. Connie brought such a positive outlook on life and he was beyond himself within her presence. He was so glad that he could talk to Connie the way that he did, it seemed as if she was always there to listen to his problems. 

Steven knew that he wanted to somehow define their relationship, but he didn’t quite know how to go about it. It seemed as if they were currently sat in a limbo between dating and being in a relationship. Both of which included a heavy amount of kissing, cuddling and holding hands. Steven wasn’t upset by this, but he was curious to know what they stood for. 

Also, he really wanted to call Connie his girlfriend. 

“C-Can I take you out for dinner?” Steven suddenly perked up, wanting to know the answer to the question. 

Was Steven asking Connie out on yet another date? He seemed to have done that quite a lot - but Connie wasn’t willing to complain. Each and every time that he had done so she had said yes and had the time of her life. 

“Where are you taking me?” Connie smirked. 

“Well, The Crab Shack was nice…”

“A little too fancy and expensive!”

“Fish Stew Pi-”

“Steven…”

“Well, how about the coffee shop?”

“Big nope.”

Steven was lost. There wasn’t really anywhere else they could have gone without going outside of town. Steven didn’t know many restaurants outside of Beach City and he wasn’t quite sure how willing Connie would have been to travel too far out anyway. 

“I don’t know where to go. I just want to be with you.” Steven shrugged, sounding incredibly deflated with his words. It wasn’t about going out to dinner, it was about being with Connie. 

“So then, can’t we go anywhere?”

“A picnic?” 

“That sounds...nice.” Connie thought about the sentiment. A picnic would have been adorable. 

“Yeah?”

“Very romantic.” Connie nodded, causing Steven to blush. 

“Well, that’s good.” Steven nodded in return. It was nice to hear that his idea had gone down well. 

A picnic. Steven could do that. He was certain he had some of the materials needed to pull that off back at home. It wasn’t as if it would have been expensive and certainly would have been a lot more personal than sitting in a busy restaurant struggling to hear one another. 

“What about a picnic under the stars?” Connie suggested, it seemed as if all of the nights in which they had spent together they had witnessed incredibly beautiful night skies. Connie would have loved to sit beneath them. Sharing that moment with Steven would have been incredible. 

“Sure, I like stars.” Steven grinned as he pointed up to the yellow star on the front of his hat. 

“Of course you do, Mr. Universe.” Connie gently rubbed her thumb against his cheek, still somewhat damp from where he had previously been crying. 

The couple sat on the bench for just a little while longer before they decided to go and explore the boardwalk. As much as Steven wanted to go and get a coffee, he was right in saying that his favourite barista was beside him and not behind the counter. It just wouldn’t have been the same. Especially if Connie wasn’t the one making the tea that he liked, it just wouldn’t have been worth it. 

It was only after a short while that they had decided that the best course of action would have been to explore the boardwalk and entertain themselves with whatever they saw first. Steven just so happened to point out one of his favourite places on earth - Funland Arcade. 

Connie had never really been to the arcade, it was something that her parents never quite let her participate in when she was a kid. It was, however, incredibly fun and Connie felt as if she had suddenly missed out on a large chunk of her childhood. 

They played plenty of games together in the arcade, giggling at each other the whole time. Steven had been to the arcade what seemed like every single week his entire life and yet Connie seemed to be so much better at all of the games that they played. Steven just hoped that she thought he was letting her win and it wasn’t just because he found himself rather terrible at them in her presence. 

Steven had never been so in love before. He couldn’t stop watching her smiling and giggling as the lights of the arcade gently lit up her face. He often found himself standing behind her teaching her to play the arcade fighting games that he had gotten so skilled in over the years. Connie allowed Steven’s hands to sit on top of hers, guiding the game completely as he rested his chin on her shoulder and softly whispered game strategies in her ear. She had no idea what he was talking about - but followed his lead on holding the joystick and pressing the buttons on the machine. 

Despite Steven being the one with the driving license, he was pretty embarrassed when Connie managed to beat him at the driving game. Frustrated, Steven tried playing the game once more - this time without Connie attempting to go head to head. Connie watched over the seat of the game and couldn’t help laughing hysterically when the animated car on-screen totalled for the second time. Steven wasn’t impressed, but turning around to see Connie laughing made his failure worth it. 

Steven knew that it was his time to shine when he slotted a coin into the machine and picked up the plastic guitar. Connie stood beside him and copied his action. Steven may have been a seasoned musician, but that made it all the more fun for Connie to beat him at his own game. 

“You’re going down, Universe.” Connie winked as she held the plastic guitar to her chest. 

“You seem pretty confident. You’re about to go head to head with Beach City’s very own Guitar Warrior champion - two years in a row.” Steven winked before tapping on the screen at the unbeaten high scores on the leaderboard where the first three scores were under the initials ‘SQU’.

Connie internally questioned what the ‘Q’ could have possibly stood for. Quinn? Either way, she was determined to prove him wrong. 

The song started and the game proved to be a lot harder than Connie had expected. It wasn’t as if she was bad - but this was certainly Steven’s area of expertise and Connie didn’t stand a chance. It didn’t take long for Steven to obliterate her score, suddenly showing no remorse for winning. He certainly didn’t hold back and let Connie win for that one - not that he had been doing that anyway. Guitar Warrior was his domain and it wouldn’t have let anyone beat him at the game. 

“Woah, you were really good at this one!” Connie laughed as she pulled the plastic guitar over her head before placing it back onto the machine. 

“I’m the true Guitar Warrior.” Steven winked as he copied Connie’s actions of putting the guitar back onto the machine. 

"Shame you were awful at everything else." Connie teased as she gave him the side-eye. 

"Hey! Maybe I was letting you win?" Steven grew defensive over his gaming abilities. Connie had obliterated him. 

"No - you weren't." 

"Uh, yeah - I was." 

"Nope. I will not believe it." 

"I'm-" Steven was lost for words. 

“So, what do you want me to beat you in next?” Connie questioned as they both stepped away from the machine. They instantly locked their hands back together as if it was a natural attraction for them to do so.

"I just won that one!" Steven pointed to the machine behind them. 

"Eh, I've seen better." Connie found entertainment in teasing Steven. 

"Better? I have the highest score on the game!" Steven chuckled in disbelief. 

"I'm messing with you. You're a very good Guitar Warrior player." Connie smiled up at Steven before tapping him gently on the chest. 

"Thank you." Steven grinned, taking a deep breath in to reassume his position of arcade king. 

"But, I can't say the same about the other games I kicked your butt in." 

"Hey!" 

Steven was very much enjoying their date at the arcade and Connie was completely sucked into the activities that he enjoyed a lot. Video games were a big part of his life and he was so glad to have been sharing them with Connie. 

“Hey, Connie!” A voice suddenly called only for Connie’s ears to prick at the noise. She stared upwards only to notice a familiar face that she hadn’t seen since breaking up for school. 

“Oh, hi Patricia!” Connie politely smiled. Steven couldn’t help but squeeze Connie’s hand a little harder, he was always nervous about meeting new people. He wanted to stay quiet. 

The girl stood before them and smiled at Connie before taking their focus from Connie down to her hand that was connected to Steven. She glanced up at Steven before grinning.

“And who’s this?” Patricia’s eyes widened at the boy. 

Connie glanced over to Steven who was suddenly looking incredibly nervous. 

“Oh, this is my boyfriend - Steven.” 

Steven stood there in sheer shock. Connie hadn’t quite meant to spill the words so soon, but she didn’t quite know how else to describe Steven. He certainly wasn’t as little as a friend and was no longer just a regular in the coffee shop. He was so much more and that deserved to be recognised. 

Boyfriend. 

Boyfriend???

BOYFRIEND!!!

Connie had called him her boyfriend!!! Steven gulped nervously, trying his hardest not to grin with excitement. He had to keep his cool as if he had heard the statement a million times before. 

“Oh, cool. It’s nice to see you around. You’ll have to come out with us all sometime.” Patricia smiled through her facade. 

As by ‘us’, Connie knew that meant the friendship group that never invited her anywhere and when they did it was only through guilt. She didn’t want to hang out with them in the slightest. If anyone was going to steal her summer, it would have been Steven. At least he never made her feel like garbage when they were together. 

“Oh yeah, that would be nice.” Connie lied through her teeth. 

“I'll leave you two to your...date? Well, I’ll see you around?” 

“Yeah! See you!” Connie gritted her teeth together as Patricia turned around and exited the conversation. 

Connie didn’t hate them - but she certainly didn’t want to be spending her time with them if she could have helped it. The likelihood was she could have spoken to them a few times or may have made the effort to hang out with them at least once during the summer, but they weren’t taking any more of her time than that. They didn’t deserve it. 

“That’s the one thing I hate about Beach City - I see everyone I know from school here.” Connie sighed as she glanced down at her shoes before looking back up at Steven. 

Steven stood with his mouth slightly ajar, stars in his eyes. He had completely zoned out after that singular word. 

“Boyfriend?” Steven mumbled out the word as if he was incapable of any kind of speech. 

Connie stared back at him, not quite understanding what he was referring to at first. Then suddenly it hit her. She had referred to Steven as her boyfriend in casual conversation.

“T-That was an accident.” Connie glanced away, feeling embarrassed that she had mentioned it. She looked back up to see Steven’s face deflate with emotions. “Unless you want to be my...boyfriend?” 

“D-Do you want to be my girlfriend?” Steven looked over at her, he was so curious to know the answer. Finally, some clarity. 

“Yes.”

“I want to be your boyfriend.” 

“Okay.” Connie confirmed. 

“So...that’s it?” Steven wasn’t quite sure what else was going to come out of the conversation. 

“I guess?” 

“Oh. So, we’re going out now?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Woah. Okay - that’s amazing.” Steven found it hard to control his emotions. 

“Yeah. It is.” Connie leant over before gently placing a small kiss onto Steven’s lips. 

He happily accepted the kiss. It was their first kiss as a couple. Now that they were officially in a relationship - did that mean that they could finally start kissing more? 

Steven was so happy that he had gotten some sort of approval from Connie’s parents. It wasn’t a lot, but just enough so he didn’t fear his life whenever they were together. It made for a much better experience. 

The kiss didn’t last for long, only a split second. They weren’t quite ready to make out with each other in the middle of the arcade in front of everyone. That was probably too big of a step to make in such a short span of time. 

Connie smiled at Steven with a slight giggle escaping her lips. 

That had cemented it. Steven loved her. He loved her more than anything. She was perfect in every single way possible and Steven would have been a fool to think any different. 

"So, what do we do now?" Steven shrugged, it was unclear that now they were officially in a relationship what they needed to do. Were there unwritten rules that they needed to follow? 

Steven would have to search the internet once he was home. He really wanted to call his dad and tell him about what had happened, but Greg was still caught up on the fact that Steven had lied and gone out of his way to mess around and get himself into trouble. Steven wasn't a bad kid - but Greg was still upset with his son. 

Bringing up Connie in a conversation wouldn't have gone down well either. She had slowly become the height of his relationship issues with his father. He needed to mend and repair what they once had. 

"I guess I could kick my new boyfriend's butt on that game over there." Connie pointed over to an arcade game in the corner. 

"You're on!" Steven smirked as he reached into his coin filled pocket and let go of Connie's hand to rush ahead.

Despite not doing anything out of the ordinary, their dare at the arcade had been one of the best days spent together. It had felt so natural to be with one another in such an open space. They could show their love through kicking each other's butt at video games. It was perfect. 

Steven dropped Connie home just before dinner time, it was one thing to have spent all day with each other - but Connie wasn't ready quite just yet to go out for a meal. She was looking forward to the picnic that Steven had raved on about all day after mentioning it. 

Steven parked his car outside the front of Connie's house. 

"Good evening, Dr Maheswaran!" Steven shouted out the window with a small wave as Connie's mother opened the door. 

Priyanka awkwardly waved back as Connie stepped past her, joining in on waving back to Steven. 

"He's rather enthusiastic..." Priyanka sighed, watching the boy in the distance roll up his window after waving. Priyanka shut the door gently behind her. 

"That's Steven." Connie smiled, happy to have her mother not making harsh comments about him anymore. 

"Oh, a letter came addressed to you today. It's on the kitchen counter." Priyanka pointed over to the kitchen as she went back to her own business. That meant sitting on the couch reading her book. 

Connie stepped over to the kitchen, curious to know what she had been sent. 

She looked down at the letter on the counter. The front was clearly labelled with her name and yet on the corner of the envelope had a familiar-looking crest printed on it. 

It was from Jayhawk University...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Laughing because Patricia and Daniel are just such useful characters for when you want someone Connie knows from school, but don't want to actually make an OC for them. Perfect. Big shoutout to Jeff from Mindful Education too. 
> 
> I LOVE writing awkward Steven and Connie dialogue. Let me write more!!!


	21. Cookie Crumble Frappe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for a picnic, lads.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter title from NatG63. Thanks bud!

Steven never wanted to be in a position in which he lied about his feelings to Connie. Steven wasn’t exactly a liar and speaking about his past wasn’t something that he wanted to hide from. Sure, it wasn’t something that needed to be brought up in casual conversation every five minutes, but it was certainly something that could have been mentioned. 

It seemed that the more time that Steven spent with Connie the more he had found himself offloading a few of his issues. He didn’t want to seat Connie with them burdens - that was something that he had to deal with. Not her. 

It was true in saying that Steven didn’t mind sharing his issues, but he didn’t want to overshare. Is that something that he had already been doing? The last thing he wanted was to make Connie feel uncomfortable. It just wasn’t right. 

The day in which they had gone to the arcade together had been one of the best days that Steven had in quite a while. Minus all of the things that they did prior to the party, it seemed as if it was a fantastic day. They had both enjoyed themselves more than anything and had gained a clearer understanding of their relationship. 

Steven was Connie’s boyfriend and that had meant the world to him. 

Connie had been so casual in letting him know that yes, she considered him her boyfriend. That was a large step for them both and it was one that Steven’s heart had refused to stop singing about since the moment that it happened. Upon driving back home from Connie’s that evening he had blasted his music louder before, singing happy songs as loud as possible. He was in a good mood and there wasn’t quite anything that could have brought that down. 

Connie, on the other hand, had opened the letter and starred rather starry-eyed down at the page. It was a miracle. There was no kind of luck in the universe that could have meant that something like this could have happened. It was insane. 

Connie had already been academically smart enough to have skipped a grade, but she had no idea that her hard work would have paid off. 

She had been accepted into early admissions. 

Connie turned seventeen in November and they were accepting applicants for the age bracket. After reviewing her test scores they had reserved her a position in case anyone were to drop out and well...

“Mom! I got into Jayhawk!” Connie waved the letter above her head in excitement, her mother turning around with a huge grin on her face. 

“Already?!” Priyanka had no doubt in her daughter’s knowledge, but being accepted into college at this age was a rare occurrence and Connie welcomed the flattery. 

“Yeah! I can start this year. I’m-” Connie was lost for words, tears welling in her eyes from the wave of emotion that was sweeping over her. All of the studying that she had put in was finally for something. It was really true - she was going to college!

“I’m so proud of you!” Priyanka smiled with open arms, allowing Connie to fall into her. 

Connie held onto her mom and fought back the urge to cry. There was something so peaceful in knowing that everything was suddenly starting to fall into place. Starting college at such an early age would have been completely daunting, but Connie had no doubt that the whole experience would have been something new and exciting. 

She had been looking forward to just about everything and having everything suddenly pushing forward changed everything. Nothing could have possibly been better!

Hearing the reassuring words from her mother made her hold on tighter. Connie knew that despite her mother’s strict ruling that she did it for a reason. She somewhat felt grateful in knowing that without her mother’s rules that there was a possibility that she may not have been able to get into college so early without it. 

Everything was different now - Connie was a college student!

“You are so wonderful! I love you so much!” Priyanka let go of the hug before kneeling down and placing her hands on Connie’s shoulders. Connie stared into her mother’s loving eyes with tears in her own. It felt so nice to hear the words. 

“I love you too, Mom.” Connie smiled, fighting the urge to cry even more. 

“Right, we need to call your father! He’s going to be so pleased!” Priyanka grinned before standing up straight and making a beeline for the phone. 

Connie stood in the middle of the living room and wiped away a single tear that was streaming down her cheek before staring down at the piece of paper in her hands. It really meant what she thought it meant. That piece of paper held so much love and understanding of her current situation. A love that couldn’t be beaten. Nothing could destroy her ambitions and this was a large step in the right direction. 

Connie had to tell all of her friends. She had to tell-

Steven. 

She had to tell...Steven. 

Connie stared down at the piece of paper once more, this time looking at it with a frown. Sure, going to college was going to be amazing - but it meant leaving Beach City behind for a while. As much as she wanted some new scenery, it had taken her the summer to realise that maybe Beach City wasn’t so bad after all. 

Going to college meant throwing away her life in Beach City. It meant throwing away Steven and everything that they had built around them. 

It didn’t have to mean that. Steven had a car. Steven could always visit her when she was in college. Not only that, but Connie was sure she would have gone back home to visit her parents quite a lot. She most certainly would be back in Beach City at some point. 

Would that have been enough time for Steven? 

The things that he had told her about himself. The way in which he was. The way in which he had told her to her face that he sometimes gets...sad. As by sometimes - he meant often. 

Would moving away destroy him? 

Connie felt a wave of guilt spread across her. She couldn’t tell him. She wouldn’t have been able to no matter how much she tried. 

She couldn’t tell him, torturing him to the point in which she left with the inevitable. They could have always been together without that constant fear over their heads. She would have told him...eventually. 

It was something they would have to discuss when the time came. However, they still had a couple of months together before any of that would have progressed and Connie was looking forward to having her best summer yet. The last summer as a high school student before heading off to college to study bigger and better things. 

Connie would have to tell Steven at some point, but that certainly wasn’t going to be any time soon. There was no need to upset him when they still had so much time that they could have been spending together. Connie knew that they would have had a perfect summer without the interference of that knowledge. 

Connie decided to keep her excitement to herself, despite desperately wanting to share her achievements with Steven. Weren’t relationships supposed to be built on trust? Wouldn’t it have been breaking that trust to not tell Steven about what she was going to be doing in the future without him? 

Either way, it had taken a few days for them to see each other outside of Connie’s work breaks. Steven had convinced Connie that he had managed to put together the perfect date for them both and it would have blown her away. Connie was never convinced otherwise, every single time that they had spent together it had been amazing. She didn’t have a single grain of doubt in her mind that Steven wouldn’t have been able to pull off an amazing date. 

This time, Steven had gone along with the theme of a picnic - just as suggested. Sure, it wasn’t a fancy restaurant, but it didn’t seem as if that was something Connie really wanted. It was nice to Steven to have considered what she may have wanted and taken the idea and ran with it. She was excited to see what he had done to make her day. 

Steven had arranged to pick Connie up from the coffee shop after work and Connie had taken a spare change of clothes so that she was more than ready to go out after being at work all day. Steven had spent near enough all day preparing for the date in the evening. 

He no longer felt nervous about doing any of it. He was convinced that no matter what he did, Connie would have welcomed the sentiments. Although, he did want to put effort into whatever he did. This time, he went well out of his way to make things special. 

Initially, Steven wanted this date to be the one in which he asked Connie to be his girlfriend. Although, it seemed as if that already ended up happening by chance. It wasn’t the most romantic thing in the world, being inside of an arcade and announcing their love for one another - but it was their own special way of doing so. 

Steven still struggled with the idea of saying ‘I love you’. As much as he wanted to, there was no confidence within him to say the words. He was so desperate for Connie to know how he felt and yet he felt as if she already knew. He loved her and there was nothing that would change that. It was the kind of love that only came around once in a lifetime and Steven would have done anything to hold onto it. 

Connie got into Steven’s car upon finishing work. Steven was in his usual attire, but seemed to have opted out of wearing the snapback. Connie was surprised to see it, but welcomed the look. No matter what he did, he would have looked just as handsome. 

Connie had no idea where Steven was planning on taking her and was quite surprised to find out that whatever he had planned was nowhere near the beach. It seemed as if Steven had opted somewhere else for the picnic. Somewhere a little more special. 

It took Connie a moment to realise where they were when Steven pulled up on the side of the road. It was the hill overlooking Beach City. Near the first time that they spent together after Beach-a-palooza and Steven had taken her to the top of the hill to look at the view. 

It was the first place that they had kissed. 

Climbing the hill didn’t get any easier, although it did seem different from the last time that Connie had walked up to it. Steven still made sure to hold onto her hand to balance them both as they walked up. Connie once again appreciated the gesture and loved the touch of his hand in hers. 

As they stepped to the very top of the hill it was slowly revealed what Steven had done under the light of day and what they found themselves beside during what looked to be a beautiful sunset. 

Connie was unable to stop herself from flushing red, along with grinning widely at the setup. There on the floor in front of her was a picnic blanket, complete with pillows, flowers, blankets, electric lanterns, grape soda and a picnic basket with an abundance of snacks inside. 

“Ta-da!” Steven smiled as he pointed towards the romantic setup that he had put a lot of effort into. 

“Steven - it’s wonderful!” Connie practically gasped at the sight. It was incredibly pretty and Connie was so lucky to have been blessed with something so beautiful. 

“I thought maybe this would be the perfect way to watch the sunset and then hopefully, see the stars! I’ve checked the weather forecast and I believe it’s going to be clear skies.” Steven confirmed as he pulled Connie over to the picnic blanket. 

Connie once again took a good look at everything that Steven had set up for them to be together. It looks incredibly comfy and the peace surrounding them on top of the hill was like no other. Connie could see why this would have been considered Steven’s favourite place to go. Everything about it was peaceful. 

“So...what do you think?” Steven asked for more validation as he sat down on the blanket, Connie following quickly behind. 

“It’s really nice. Thank you, Steven.” Connie smiled as she sat down on the blanket beside him before slowly pushing her fingers through the fabric. The blanket wasn’t like a traditional picnic blanket - it was incredibly soft and Connie could have found herself snuggled up on it all day every day if someone gave her the chance. 

“I-I wanted to do something nice for you. Y’know, now that you’re my...girlfriend.” Steven still felt his heart skip a beat at the word. It didn’t feel quite so natural just yet, although he was certainly happy enough to get used to it. 

“You’re never going to stop bringing that up - are you?” Connie smirked.

“Nope. Never.” 

Connie looked behind her before moving one of the pillows that Steven had brought. She laid herself down on the pillow and rested her hands on her stomach. Steven smiled down at her before copying her action - taking his place beside her. 

There was nothing quite as peaceful as what they were experiencing. It felt so natural to be so close to one another. Connie could practically feel Steven’s body heat emitting from him - he was always so warm. 

They kept a few moments of silence, doing nothing more than staring up at the sky together. It was...nice. 

Connie had a somewhat stressful day at work. It seemed that every single customer that came into the store wanted something obscene. Not only that, everything that they made was likely to come back with a ridiculous complaint. Every customer they had seemed to think it was okay to leave huge amounts of mess on the table after they had finished. It was terrible and Connie was more than pleased to have been spending her evening with Steven. 

After being accepted into college, her parents were in a fantastic mood. When she asked about going to see Steven until late they didn’t seem to mind. It was something that she was sure they would have denied the request for, but instead, they didn’t say a word other than ‘I hope you have fun, make sure to be safe!’. It was as if by getting into college they no longer wanted to be on her back about just about everything. 

It was good. 

“Do you ever wonder if there’s anything more to this universe than planet earth?” Connie suddenly questioned as she stared up at the sky, her mind plagued with questions about what the rest of the galaxy held. 

“What? Like aliens?” Steven turned his head on the pillow. 

“Yeah, I guess.” 

“Yeah, aliens are cool. I like to think there’s more to space than just us.” Steven shrugged.

“What kind of aliens? Little green men?” Connie snorted. 

“No, aliens with superpowers.”

“What kind of superpowers?”

“Maybe ones that could fly, or ones that are really good at martial arts. Oh - maybe even ones that can pull weapons from their belly buttons!” 

“That’s ridiculous. How did you even come up with that?” Connie chuckled, turning her full body on her side to face Steven.

“Oh, I saw it in this cartoon once. Pretty cool.” Steven nodded before also turning onto his side. 

It was nice to have been lying side by side with Connie. It was adorable to see her so close, half her face being consumed by the pillow and the other half slowly being covered by the hair that was falling onto her face. 

Steven reached over and completed his usual task of pushing Connie’s hair away from her face. He couldn’t help but study her facial features, once again entranced by her beauty. 

Unlike all the other times that he had been overcome by the urge to want to kiss her - this time was different. This time it felt as if he had already kissed her so many times that there was no need to worry about such a thing any more. Connie was always welcoming to the kisses and if she wasn’t then Steven knew that she would have told him. 

Connie stared back at Steven. It felt incredibly nice seeing him lying there so comfortably beside her. There was a little smile sitting on his lips and she couldn’t help but see it as the most adorable thing she had ever laid her eyes on. Steven was adorable - she couldn’t deny that. 

“You’re really pretty.” Steven practically whispered, refusing to remove his gaze. 

“You’ve said that before - lots.” Connie grinned - Steven had most certainly worn out that compliment. Although, no matter how many times he said it, it still made Connie feel incredibly special. 

“I know, but I mean it.”

“You’re so sweet.” Connie giggled as Steven’s little smile turned much bigger. 

“I wish we had met sooner.” 

“Better late than never?”

“Yeah…” 

It really was better late than never. Well, Steven liked to have thought that if he was to have met Connie at the start of last summer things wouldn't have gone as south as they had done. Steven always feared falling into the same way he was before and not going to therapy wasn't the greatest thing he had done. He knew that as much as he didn't want to he probably would have had to return at some point.

"Are you okay? You seem-" Connie furrowed her eyebrows, noticing something different with Steven. Although he had been his usual happy self, she was starting to clock when there wasn't something quite right. 

"I'm okay. I'm happy to be here with you." 

"What about at home?" 

"What about it?" 

"Is everything...okay?" 

"Yeah, it's okay. I think my dad's going to be heading off again soon." 

"Didn't he just get back?" 

"He comes and goes a lot. It's fine." Steven shrugged, he was used to his dad travelling back and forth. It was how he got paid and somehow managed to earn more on tour than he did at the car wash. 

"Is he going to be there on your birthday?" 

"Oh yeah! My dad is always home for my birthday - no matter what. Although, he did miss Beach-a-palooza this year and he's usually always there for that. It's fine, he wouldn't miss it." Steven finally confirmed. 

It was true, there was no way that Greg would have been able to forget Steven's birthday. There was no way he would book anything around that time. It wasn't right and Greg wasn't completely careless. He had to be back in town for the middle of August. It was always certain he would be there then. 

Besides, this year was Steven's big eighteen which meant Greg wanted to put in more effort than usual. Steven wasn't too bothered by his birthday, the more he grew up the more distant the holiday became. 

"Good. What do you want for your birthday anyway?" Connie questioned, bringing up a new topic. 

"You don't have to get me anything." Steven insisted. 

"Yes I do, silly. You're my boyfriend - why wouldn't I get you a gift?" Connie leant her elbow against the pillow and rested her head on her hand. 

"Because you're already enough." Steven cooed. As adorable as he was, Connie could have been sick at the sound of his flirtatious drivel that came from his mouth. 

"Real talk - that isn't a gift." Connie scowled jokingly. 

"Okay, well...I like coffee, oh and that tea you make!" 

"I'm not getting you tea." 

"Why not?" 

"Because I can get you tea any day! This is your eighteen birthday - it has to be something special." Connie groaned, growing frustrated with Steven's inability to be spoilt. He wasn't very materialistic and that made it hard for anyone to buy him gifts. 

"I haven't really thought about it." 

"Yeah, I can tell..." Connie sighed with a grin.

"Surprise me!" 

"Surprise you?" 

"Yeah! Just get...anything you think I might like."

“Okay, fine. I’ll think of something.” Connie confirmed, internally panicking that she had no idea what she was going to get the boy. It was near to impossible to think of something that he could have possibly wanted. 

It was in that moment that Connie realised that she didn’t quite know Steven as well as she claimed. Well, that was a lie. The number of nights that they had previously spent talking to each other over text was proof that they knew quite a lot about one another. They had shared so much over such a short span of time. 

They both laid peacefully on the blanket, eventually opting to tuck into some of the snacks that Steven and bought with them before watching a funny TubeTube video that Steven was convinced was the funniest thing he had seen with his own two eyes. It did, in fact, make Connie laugh too. Perhaps not quite as much - but it was certainly funny. 

Steven had made some of an effort when it came to the food, it was by no means a full meal, but the mass amount of snacks was enough to tide them over for a while in the evening. It didn’t take either of them long to practically demolish what they did have as they sat together and watched the sun disappear on the horizon. 

A recurring theme was that Connie was bound to take Steven’s jacket at some point in the evening. Steven counted in his head how long it took for her to give him that...look. The look that said ‘oh, please, Steven...I really would like to wear your lovely pink varsity jacket now’. Steven wasn’t going to put up a fight and he certainly loved the idea of her wearing something that was always so close to him. 

Connie curled up to Steven as they laid on the blankets and pillows staring up at the sky. It had been a lovely evening talking about just about anything and everything. There was something about the peace that they shared that they loved. The kind of quiet where they were the only people that mattered. 

There were plenty of stars to spot and Connie named a couple of constellations, blowing Steven’s mind with just how smart she truly was. He was in complete awe of her knowledge and listened contently to all of the facts she had to say about each of them. He had never been so obsessed with astrology in his life, although he wasn’t quite sure whether he was interested in the facts or just wanted to hear Connie speak so passionately about something that she liked. 

It was getting late in the evening and Connie had already agreed with her parents that she would be home well before midnight. Steven knew that curfew was important and he wasn’t willing to let Connie ever be late home again. It wouldn’t have been fair on the Maheswaran parents and he certainly wasn’t prepared to make them upset - not after everything that happened. He wanted to keep their trust. 

It was true in saying that they could have laid with each other the whole night. It seemed as if neither of them wanted to move as they held each other under the stars. 

In the silence, a deep seed of guilt began to grow inside of Connie. No matter what happened throughout the night there was one thing on her mind, the same thing that had been on her mind all day and for the first time since they had met - it wasn’t Steven. 

College. 

How was she supposed to tell Steven about going to college if they had already established their relationship? She didn’t want him to feel as if she was leading her onto nothing. Just because she was going to college that didn’t mean their relationship needed to end - did it? They had only just started it and Connie was excited to continue it regardless of where she was. 

She couldn’t say anything, despite being completely overwhelmed with both excitement and anxiety. It was something that she should have been excited about sharing with her boyfriend and yet in that current moment, she couldn’t think of anything worse than sharing the news with him. 

How was he going to react? It seemed as if Steven was incredibly sensitive to the little things and seeing how happy she had made him over the past month or so really seemed to have changed his perspective on things. Connie wasn’t ready to ruin that...but she also couldn’t lie to him! 

Connie decided it was best to keep quiet for now, as much as she really wanted to tell him the truth. She would tell him - just slightly later than usual. He must have expected she would have gone away at some point, just maybe not quite so soon. 

“This has been really nice. Thank you for everything, Steven.” Connie continued to cuddle up to Steven before leaning over and planting a small kiss on his cheek. 

“No prob, Bob. I’m glad you had a good time.” Steven smiled before affectionately kissing her forehead in return. They both felt so loved within each other’s presence. 

It had been a while since both of them had kissed in quite the way that provided such a feeling. It wasn’t as if either of them didn’t want to kiss in that way, but a part of them felt awkward after everything that had happened after it. They both needed some time to understand their deeper feelings behind the passionate kiss. It was something they both wanted again - but not quite just yet. 

Connie went home that evening with her heart full. Steven felt just the same way after spending the whole evening underneath the stars. It was finally what they wanted to do with their time as a couple and everything felt so...right. 

Steven dropped Connie home thirty minutes before curfew which once again got him some points with the Maheswarans. It wasn’t always about that, but it certainly helped his case. Steven wanted to be a good person and with Connie in the equation things were starting to look up. 

As much as Connie was fighting the urge on the inside to tell him about college, Steven was fighting the urge to tell Connie how he felt...along with potentially ‘warning’ her about what had happened to him last year. 

Two very important things within their life and yet both of them clashed miserably together. Neither of them was going to go well with one another. It was impossible. 

Although Steven was incredibly happy about being with Connie all evening he glanced over to the passenger seat on his way home and sighed deeply. There on the seat was his varsity jacket that she had taken off and left there before exiting the vehicle. 

He loved her - but telling her he loved her when he couldn’t even love himself was going to be difficult.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys - I seem to say this at the end of every chapter...BUT THANK YOU. Your response to this has been incredible and I love all your comments so much, I read every one and then jump around the room irritating anyone within my presence by shouting about how lovely your comments are. 
> 
> But...could you guys do me a favour? It would mean the world to me...
> 
> If you haven't already, could you read my story EMOTIONAL SELF-CONTROL? It's on my profile and although it's not as sweet and fluffy as this one, I put a lot of effort into it and I'm slowly realising that a coffee shop AU is getting more attention and it's making me BIG SAD. I love coffee shop...but Emotional Self-Control holds a very special place in my heart and I THINK YOU WOULD LIKE IT! <3


	22. English Tea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Connie decides to ask Lars and Sadie their advice on what to get Steven for his birthday. Let's just say they don't give the greatest suggestions...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks Teapods for the name suggestion! <3

“You could get that dork absolutely anything and he would be fine with it. How about a piece of rock off the sidewalk? He’d go crazy for something so sentimental.” Lars cocked an eyebrow down at Connie as she questioned what she could have possibly have gotten Steven for his birthday. 

Lars and Sadie seemed to have known him for a long time, it was only sensible to ask them their opinion. Well, it would have been easier to have just asked Sadie’s opinion. Lars was never much help. 

“I’m not getting him a rock.” Connie sighed. It had taken her a couple of months to finally see Lars’ poor sense of humour. Within the first week, she was already fighting him back on his words. Lars had always been a pretty easy target. 

“Just get him a Beach City Coffee gift card.” Lars shrugged as he sat himself up on the counter. It was getting late during the day and the rush that came within the afternoon had slowly been dying off the past hour leaving the employees to use that time to speak to one another. 

“I can’t do that.” 

“Sure you can, he comes in here all the time. You’d be doing his card a favour.” Lars justified his suggestion. 

“That feels cheap.” 

“Well yeah, exactly! You’d get a staff discount.” Lars shrugged, still trying to sound as if he was actually making some kind of helpful suggestion that Connie could have actually used to purchase a birthday present for Steven. 

It wasn’t long before Steven’s birthday and she was running out of ideas. No matter how long it had been since she had found out about when his birthday was, every single day had become a countdown. A countdown that meant she was running out of time. The longer she left it the less time she had to get him a gift. There was nothing that she could think of that would have been special. What was she supposed to get Steven? 

It had been a few weeks since they had officially made themselves girlfriend and boyfriend. That had been a fantastic day for them both and ever since they had spent a lot of time together. Despite that - Connie was still lost when it came to getting Steven a gift. What was she going to get him? 

There was nothing that she could have possibly thought of that would have given her the suggestion that she so desired. 

“How about a watch? That’s a very traditional gift.” Sadie suggested. 

“I’ve never seen him wear a watch. It seems…” 

“Well, if you’ve never seen him with a watch it’s because he doesn’t own one. Perfect. Sorted.” Lars butted in. In a way, he was right - but that didn’t seem like the sort of thing that Steven would have liked. He didn’t exactly seem very materialistic and getting him a watch would have been rather flash. 

“How about something personal to him?” Sadie made yet another suggestion. 

“What’s personal to...Steven?” Connie furrowed her eyebrows, feeling a little guilty that she wasn’t quite sure how to answer the question. 

“Woah, Sadie. I didn’t expect you to suggest...that!” Lars smirked over to Sadie as she realised what she suggested may have come to a few sexual connotations. 

“Nope. That’s not what I meant.” Sadie waved her hands in front of her. 

“Perfect. Just give him something personal. Y’know...personal personal.” Lars winked over at Connie making her somewhat disgusted by his words. Although, by this point, she had become completely numb to his stupid comments. 

“Lars!” Sadie snapped. 

“Look, it was just a suggestion!” 

“An inappropriate suggestion - they’re minors.” Sadie responded sharply. 

“Well, Steven won’t be next week.” Lars rolled his eyes. 

“Nope. That’s not the point.” Sadie huffed deeply, incredibly irritated by Lars’ comments. 

“Guys, I’m standing right here. Could do without the awkward conversations regarding my relationship.” Connie tilted her head at both of them. “Sound good?”

Lars and Sadie nodded at her request. Despite being slightly older than Connie, Lars and Sadie mostly bickered like children. It often came to a point in which Connie would have to stop their bickering by stepping in like a parent. It was sometimes hilarious and sometimes just annoying. 

“Aside from Lars’ horrible suggestion - I was thinking more along the lines of something that was special to both of you.” Sadie gave her own opinion on the subject, this time without being disturbed by Lars. 

Connie thought about it for a while. What was special to both of them? 

Each other? 

Oh, this was much more difficult than she had anticipated. It was certainly going to end up being something incredibly generic and Connie wouldn’t have been able to help it. 

It was going to end up being a Beach City Coffee gift card that she would purchase in a panic the day before. Steven certainly hadn’t made this easy for her. Connie was so desperate for ideas that she had even discussed it with her parents. 

They weren’t any help. 

Steven also hadn’t been any help when asking him what he wanted. He didn’t want anything - he already had everything that he wanted, which wasn’t much. 

Connie was already starting to get a little bit nervous as she had been invited over to Steven’s for his birthday. That meant being in the presence of his aunts and dad for the first time ever. Steven had attempted to get them to meet Connie sooner, but after everything that happened at the party, it seemed as if Connie was a little anxious to go over. Her parents had completely embarrassed her that night. 

Steven’s aunts were excited to meet the girl that Steven had been spending all of his time with. They were surprised that they hadn’t seen her sooner, considering she was mostly all that Steven spoke about. Amethyst was convinced that she didn’t exist and teased Steven frequently about it - much to his frustration. 

It hadn’t taken Steven long to mend his relationship with his father after the night in which they had both exchanged some harsh words with each other. There was a need for them both to be close, regardless of what they thought. They had an incredibly tight bond and nobody would have come across that. 

Besides, Steven had been excited to tell his dad more about Connie and what he had been up to. Greg was reluctant at first before completely opening up and allowing Steven to share both his wins and frustrations. Greg was just happy to see Steven in his element. It had been a long time since he had seen his son smile the way in which he smiled when he spoke about Connie. 

Greg was so pleased that Steven had found someone he could feel that way around. She was quite clearly a good influence to be around, despite Greg speaking to him repeatedly about what he had done at the party to have been wrong. 

Steven understood that his reaction at the party had been wrong and he didn’t want to get angry in that way ever again. It may have been a difficult request for himself, but he was going to try. It just felt as if every single time that someone brought up his mother within a conversation all of his insides were twisted. 

It was a sensitive topic. 

It wasn’t as if Steven had gone straight back to Greg without some kind of feud. As much as they wanted things to be perfect, they never would be. A lot of their relationship was built around being able to ignore a lot of the past and what had happened. Greg tried his hardest to convince Steven to continue to go to therapy - but he was quick to refuse. 

Steven didn’t want to be that kind of person anymore. Steven didn’t need therapy to be happy. That was stupid. Steven wanted to be his own person without having to feel worthless every single week by being forced to some appointment where he sat inside of a room and cried to someone that was being paid to just sit and...listen. 

It felt unnatural and Steven wanted to do everything that he possibly could to avoid it. 

Besides, Steven was in a mental space where he felt as if it was something that he didn’t need in that very moment. It seemed as if a lot of what he wanted to share he was able to share with Connie. It wasn’t completely healthy, but it got a lot off his chest and it was nice to have someone listen to him that felt as if they wanted to listen to him. She wanted to listen to his concerns because she loved him and that was worth more than any therapist could have given him. 

It wasn’t completely healthy and Steven knew that. He shouldn’t have had to rely on Connie for something so personal. It certainly wasn’t fair on her. He tried not to offload his problem often and found himself apologising profusely if he ever mentioned anything of the sort. 

Connie didn’t mind - as long as she got to share the problems that she was having with her parents in exchange for listening to Steven speak about his issues before holding him tightly. It was nice to have been able to vent to each other without feeling as if there was any kind of judgement between them both. 

It was lovely in a sense and both of them enjoyed it in a way that made sure that they maintained their healthy relationship regardless of what they shared between one another. 

Although, Steven had never gone into last year. It wasn’t something that he wanted to share just yet. That wouldn’t have been acceptable to bring it up in conversation. 

‘Oh yes, Connie. Last year I was so mentally ill that I wanted to die.’ 

It wouldn’t have gone down well in a conversation and Steven wasn’t ready to share that part of himself. It was embarrassing and he was concerned it would have made Connie look at him differently. Perhaps the same way that his aunts and dad looked at him whenever they were around. It would have been awful for Connie to have looked at him in the same way. He didn’t want that to be the case. 

Connie wasn’t any better in the sense that she still hadn’t shared her excitement about college with Steven. It was something that she desperately wanted to do and yet it was yet to come up in a conversation that she felt as if she could have shared it within. Of course, it would have been tough - but that was why she had been putting it off for so long. 

The longer she went without saying anything the worse it got. It would have gotten to the point in which it would have been a week before college before packing up and leaving Steven behind in the dust. It was going to feel horrible for them both. 

She couldn’t let him feel as if he was just some quirky summer romance. It wasn’t like that at all. Sure, they had found each other within the summer, but it wasn’t as if she wanted it to be over as soon as it ended. Connie wanted to be with Steven for as long as time allowed. 

“I just, I have no idea. This is far too difficult.” Connie sighed as she pressed her hand against her forehead. There was sheer frustration within her about getting him a present. What could she have possibly gotten him that wouldn’t have made it seem as if she had put minimal effort into it? 

“I just never get people gifts. It’s easier that way.” Lars suddenly stated as if that was going to help anyone. 

“Yeah, I know you don’t.” Sadie sighed, knowing what it was like to be Lars’ friends. Five years in a row and she had never forgotten his birthday and yet Lars never seemed to be able to provide Sadie with the same courtesy. 

Instead, Sadie had received a special drink that had been made by Lars on the day. There was never any thought that went into getting something, but hey, at least he made a slight bit of effort. It wasn’t as if making coffee was just part of his job or anything…

“Rude.” 

“The truth.” 

“Ugh, you guys are impossible.” Connie groaned, growing even more frustrated with the fact that they were certainly going to start an argument about just about anything just so that they could prove each other wrong. 

Nothing was worse than Lars and Sadie bickering. Connie was going to go insane. 

“Sorry, Connie. Sadie is just obsessed with me.” Lars smirked as he sat himself up on the counter before folding over his arms. 

Sadie pressed her lips into a thin line and clenched her fists together.

“Ugh! I am not obsessed with you! You’re so-” Sadie began, raising her voice slightly. 

“Oh my- guys! Please! I can’t have a single day in this place without you both arguing with each other like children. Aren’t you both like...twenty? You obviously have something going on so I’m happy to watch the shop for five minutes so you can sort that out in the storeroom. Shout at each other, kiss - whatever. Just stop being so irritating!” Connie suddenly snapped causing both Lars and Sadie to get slightly scared with Connie’s tone of frustration. 

They hadn’t quite expected...that. 

“Woah, okay...sorry, Connie.” Lars suddenly threw his hands up in his own defence. There was clearly something going on with Connie too. 

Sure, it was all the built-up stress of trying to figure out what she was going to get Steven for his birthday and the overhanging stress that perhaps by telling her boyfriend about her leaving to go to college may have sent him into a spiralling depression. But it was fine. Lars and Sadie clearly had more important things going on. The tension between them was unbearable. 

“Sorry.” Connie breathed heavily, she hadn’t quite expected to take out all of her inner demons on her coworkers. It wasn’t fair on them. 

“Are you...okay?” Sadie furrowed her eyebrows with concern as she stepped over to Connie.

“There’s a lot going on. Don’t worry about it.” Connie half-smiled.

“Well, just know that I’m here for you if you need to talk about anything.” Sadie gently placed her hand onto Connie’s shoulder. 

“We’re here for you.” Lars corrected with a smile, hopping off the counter and stepping forward to comfort Connie. 

It felt nice to have such a supportive group of people around her. It felt as if her issues were sublime compared to a lot of people in the world - although that didn’t mean her emotions were invalid. It just meant that she was acutely aware here problems weren't the end-all. 

Going to see Steven on his birthday would have been amazing, but there was no harm in admitting that she was nervous about it. She wanted to make sure that he had a special eighteenth birthday and that was important to her - regardless of what she eventually ended up getting him. 

After Steven’s birthday, it wouldn’t have been long since she would have to begin to start packing up for college and making the move. She didn’t want to have to tell him - but she had to. It was just the case that she internally refused to make sure it was something that she didn’t tell him on his birthday. That would have been awful. 

“Thanks, guys.” Connie glanced over to each of them and smiled. They both meant the world to her after working at the coffee shop for the summer. It was nice to have made such great friends with them both. They were truly good people and she loved them both equally - she finally understood why Steven had come into the coffee shop so often to strike up a conversation with them. 

“You know we’ll always be there for you.” 

“Besides, we kind of want to know all the embarrassing things Steven does so that we can bully him whenever he comes in on your days off.” Lars smirked down at Connie. As much as Connie wished that he was joking - this was certainly very on character for Lars and she knew that this was exactly what they did whenever she wasn’t working. 

“We don’t do that.” Sadie shook her head. 

“No, you don’t. I do. That dude is hilarious - especially when it comes to you. He’s crazy about you.” Lars rolled his eyes as he spoke, once again making his way over to the nearest counter and leaning against it. 

“Yeah, you should have seen him when he first met you. I’ve never seen anyone so nervous in my whole life.” Sadie giggled, remembering Steven being such a fumbling nervous mess when he had first come across Connie within the coffee shop. 

“Really?” Connie laughed along with them. It was something that she knew about Steven, she had been there. Although hearing it from them felt nice. He really did love her and everyone could see it. 

“He’s a keeper. The sweetest teenager in existence.” Sadie chuckled, speaking so highly about Steven. It was true - he really was the sweetest teenager in existence. 

Connie wasn’t going to deny that. He was a keeper! The pit within her twisted at the thought - what about college? Was he going to be a keeper if she went off to college and left him behind in Beach City? 

That wasn’t fair. 

“Yeah...he really is.” Connie smiled as she looked off to the side, thinking about Steven. 

“You could get him anything for his birthday and he wouldn’t care. He’d just want to be with you.” Lars reiterated his previous point. 

Maybe getting a rock off the floor wasn’t actually that bad of an idea. Lars was right. Connie could have gotten Steven anything and it wouldn’t have mattered - as long as she was there to give it to him. 

“You’re right.” Connie confirmed, expanding Lars’ ego with simple words. 

Sadie glanced over to Lars and smiled. Lars had somehow managed to turn his weirdly blunt comments on their head and make them somewhat wholesome. It was what Lars seemed to have been best at. He could have done without the blunt comments to have begun with. 

Connie knew that she would have to go and see Steven eventually to speak about it - breaking the truth to him would have been hard. 

Although, to begin with, she wanted to get his birthday out of the equation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys! I won't be updating this over the weekend (04/07-05/07) because it'll give me time to catch up on writing some chapters so I'm not so far behind. Also, all you Americans will be celebrating some independence and doubt you'll want to read fanfiction. 
> 
> Either way, the story will be back on Monday with a fun chapter! See you then. 
> 
> Also - excuse me, I see some people are not paying their comment tax! So, here's a question:
> 
> COULD YOU WORK IN A COFFEE SHOP WITH LARS AND SADIE - OR WOULD THEY DRIVE YOU NUTS?


	23. Green Tea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Steven's birthday! 
> 
> Connie doesn't exactly have the greatest gift for him - but Steven doesn't mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I LIED. I got caught up with life and I am sorry I couldn't get a chapter out on Monday. 
> 
> I am very very sorry.

Steven dressed up in some of his best attire for the day. That meant switching out his t-shirt for a nice shirt that he had owned for as long as he could remember. Everything else stayed the same - apart from ditching his usual black hoodie and just keeping himself in the pink varsity. 

It had been a few weeks since he was punched in the face by Kevin and the bruising around his eye had finally completely disappeared. It had taken quite a while, but it felt weird to not have it there on his face anymore. Not having to cover it up was quite the treat and being able to touch anywhere around his eye without wincing was certainly a bonus. 

“Happy birthday, Steven!” Connie practically cheered as she threw her arms around him. 

“Thank you!” Steven grinned before kissing her quickly on the lips. 

Considering they were within the presence of all of Steven’s family, Connie found herself overwhelmed with embarrassment. Although, nobody said a word or gave disapproving looks after they had kissed. It was a completely different world. Steven’s parental figures did not disapprove of his relationship status - unlike her own parents. 

“Hello, Connie - it’s so nice to finally meet you. Steven’s told us so much about you.” Pearl smiled as she welcomed Connie into their home. 

Yes, they had heard just about everything about Connie. It wasn’t as if Steven had spared any details when speaking about her as if she was a goddess. 

“Sup.” Amethyst waved from the back.

“It’s good to meet you, Connie.” Garnet smiled and nodded as she spoke. 

“Steven’s told me a lot about you all. You have a lovely home!” Connie commented as she glanced around the beach house - finally able to see exactly what the cute house on the side of the hill looked like from within. Other than seeing vague pictures of Steven’s bedroom in messages that he had sent or video calls she was surprised to see how large the house really was. 

“Why, thank you. You really are as sweet as Steven claimed.” Pearl grinned, suddenly making Steven blush bright red. 

Yes, he had spoken rather frequently about Connie. Enough to tell them exactly what she liked and what she disliked. He had also told them a lot about how much he liked her. It wasn’t as if he had a huge list of friends that he could have shared that information with. His aunts had always been the closest to it. 

“Aw.” Connie swooned, turning to Steven to see him blush. It felt nice to know that Steven had spoken about her in such a way that made them believe that she was sweet. It was kind of him to do so and she wished that she could have spoken to her parents as openly about Steven as he could do with her to his aunts. 

Connie was holding a small box in her hands. It was wrapped up with a nice bow placed on the top. It had taken her long enough to figure out what she wanted to get Steven and she still wasn’t quite sure whether or not it was right or not. Although, she had eventually come to the conclusion that it didn’t matter what it was - as long as she showed up on his birthday he wouldn’t have cared what was inside the box. 

Connie sort of hoped that Steven wouldn’t care what was inside of the box. It didn’t really seem like anything special and she couldn’t help but feel guilty about it. 

All he wanted was to spend a day hanging out with his family. It was nice to finally get them all together. It seemed like the one time a year that they really could pull it off. Other than that, it became almost impossible to get everyone together. When it came to his aunts and his dad it seemed as if they wanted to be near each other as little as humanly possible. They quite clearly didn’t have the best relationship. Their entire relationship was built on the care for Steven. 

Connie was surprised to see Greg, she hadn’t quite expected Steven to look so similar to his father. It wasn’t as if she had ever seen him when he had come to the door that one time after the party. 

“Oh, you must be Connie.” Greg mentioned as he looked down to see the girl that had stolen his son’s heart. It was clear that they had quite the connection, it was as if they couldn’t even stand far apart from one another. 

Greg didn’t mind, Connie had made him happier than he had ever been before. He was grateful to have finally been able to meet Connie. 

“Mr Universe.” Connie nodded, excited to have finally met the great Mr Universe that Steven usually spoke so highly of. 

“You can call me Greg.” Greg smiled at Connie. 

“It’s nice to meet you, Greg.” Connie beamed, Steven’s father seemed pretty nice. Everyone was being incredibly kind to her. 

Steven had opted to have a barbeque with all of his family just outside of his house down on the beach. It was something that was incredibly simple and yet would have meant that Steven could have gotten everyone together for once. That and his dad was incredibly good working the barbeque and would have loved to have eaten one of the hotdogs he was more than capable of making. 

Greg had taken to saying the phrase ‘if every porkchop were perfect, we wouldn’t have hotdogs’ and although the phrase confused Connie when she first heard it - she finally understood it with deep meaning. Sometimes having flaws could be a good thing, right? 

Connie and Steven sat next to each other, closer than anyone else in the circle as Steven’s family spent a lot of the time quizzing Connie on what she was doing in school. It was incredibly hard for Connie not to mention anything about college when that was the only thing on her mind when it came to school. Of course, she wanted to tell everyone - but she couldn’t tell everyone if she hadn’t told Steven. She couldn’t tell him in an open forum like this. 

Other than when he was eating, Steven took to holding Connie’s hand the entire time. He didn’t seem to be embarrassed in the slightest about showing affection around his family. Steven certainly wasn’t embarrassed by Connie and wanted to show his love for her regardless of the situation. He was proud to be her boyfriend and he was willing to let his family into a well-known 'secret' that was their relationship.

Steven was having a wonderful time with his family. It wasn't very often that everyone got together as they currently were and it felt good to be in everyone's company. It felt even better to know that everyone was getting on well with Connie and they seemed to warm up to her incredibly quickly. 

Connie, although sometimes shy, was incredibly charismatic and it didn't take long for them to near enough love her as much as Steven did. They could see just how much love they shared for each other from the never-ending gazes and little smirks that they often gave one another. 

As the day wound down and everyone had consumed enough food that they could have gone into a food coma, Steven and Connie found themselves back inside of the beach house. 

Steven wanted to show Connie his bedroom, the place in which he spent most of his time when he wasn't wandering around or ordering coffee. He didn't want to imply anything, but he wanted Connie to see where he lived. A full tour of the home that she so desperately wanted. 

"You don't have a door?" Connie questioned as she walked up the steps to his bedroom, following him closely. 

"No...I mean, for the most part, my aunts are usually on the opposite side of the house. It doesn't really bother me." Steven chuckled, there was a reason why he didn't have a door to his room - but he wasn't going to get into that. He used to have a door. 

Connie looked around his room. It was just how she had expected any teenager boy's room to look, except a lot cleaner than the movies had depicted. Steven had a bed situated in the middle of the room with a video games console and television opposite. He had a chest of drawers, but it seemed as if other than posters from his favourite shows and video games there wasn't much else in the room. 

Despite being sparse in decor and furniture - it was pretty homely and the sliding doors out to a small balcony gave the room plenty of light that it was otherwise lacking with no windows. 

Connie noticed that the gift she had given Steven earlier on during the day was now sat on his bed. Steven sat on the end of his bed and picked up the gift that had been neatly wrapped by Connie. 

“Can I open it?” Steven asked politely as he looked up at Connie in anticipation. 

“It’s not much.” 

“That’s okay! Thank you.” Steven smiled before patting the bed, suggesting for Connie to sit next to him as he opened his gift. 

Connie awkwardly stepped over and sat beside him at the end of the bed which she had just realised was incredibly comfortable. His sheets were stupidly soft and she couldn’t help but run her hands back and forth against them. 

Steven looked up at Connie as if he needed further permission before opening the gift. Connie nodded as Steven began to tear open the gift from the corners. Connie had certainly wrapped the box neatly and he was excited to see what she had gotten him. 

Steven eventually broke through to the gift, pulling it out of the paper, opening the box and taking a better look at what was inside. 

“This- Connie! It’s amazing!” Steven grinned down at the gift. 

On the day in which they had gone to the arcade together, they had taken a photograph together. In fact, it was one of their first photographs together. Inside of a photo booth, they pulled goofy faces and even took some sensible photos together. Nice photographs they could keep forever. 

One of which was sat inside of a wooden photo frame, a photo of them both sat inside of the booth. It truly was a hilarious photograph. Connie was wearing Steven’s snapback backwards, giggling uncontrollably as Steven held her close, kissing her on the cheek as she attempted to wiggle away. The photo frame was lined with a few of the tickets that Connie had won in Funland Arcade that she certainly wasn’t going to claim a gift for. 

“I know it’s not much-” 

“What? No! I love it!” Steven was beyond grateful for the gift. Little did Connie know, it was his favourite photograph and he had already changed his phone wallpaper to the image a few weeks ago. 

Steven immediately stood up and made his way to the opposite end of his bed, shelves built up near where he slept. Steven leant on his bed as he placed the photograph in the middle of the shelves, claiming its permanent position over his bed. 

“See, it’s perfect!” Steven couldn’t take his eyes off it as he stepped back to take another look. 

“I know, but it’s your eighteenth. I should have gotten you something else.” Connie couldn’t help but feel incredibly guilty about not going above and beyond for his birthday. She knew she should have at least gotten the gift card - or even the rock that Lars suggestion. At least then it would have been something else and not just a piece of paper stuck between some wood. 

Steven couldn’t quite believe what he was hearing. Did Connie really feel that bad about getting him such a simplistic gift? He didn’t want anything out of the ordinary. The reality was that he didn’t want anything other than Connie to be with him on his birthday and he already had that wish. 

Steven practically hopped to the other end of the bed to join Connie once more, he sat himself back down next to Connie. It was Steven’s birthday and he felt incredibly happy and incredibly confident after having such a great day with everyone. Steven leant over to Connie and kissed her on the lips quickly before pulling away with a smile. 

“I’m just glad you’re here.” Steven smirked. 

“Well, I couldn’t not show up.” Connie laughed, she had previously been pretty nervous about going over, but every ounce of anxiety slipped away pretty quickly once she had met everyone and settled down. 

“I think my family likes you!” Steven tilted his head as he leant back on the bed with his hands.

“A more enjoyable experience than meeting my parents.” Connie snorted.

“I like your parents!” 

“Really?”

“Yeah, they’re really nice!” 

Connie leant over to Steven and touched her hand against his forehead before cocking an eyebrow.

“Hmm, you are kind of warm. Must be something wrong.” 

“Nothing is wrong. They are nice!” Steven was quick to defend the Maheswaran’s.

“You always see the good in everyone - don’t you?” Connie chuckled. It wasn’t as if her parents were bad people, but Steven certainly seemed to see something in her parents regardless of how badly they had treated him when they had first met. 

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I?” Steven always saw good in people. 

Apart from Kevin. Nobody saw good in Kevin - not even Steven. 

Connie turned on the edge of the bed to face Steven, she placed her hand on the side of his face and gently felt what seemed to be some sort of fluffy stubble despite only just having shaved in the morning. Although his small amounts of facial hair were attempting to come through, his cheek was still incredibly soft. 

“You’re just too nice!” Connie laughed lightly, completely smitten by the boy. 

“No, you’re the nice one.” Steven countered. 

“You’re the ticklish one!” Connie suddenly pounced, making her move to take Steven down in the only way she knew possible. 

Steven jolted backwards, erupting into laughter as Connie poked him in all the places that made him giggle. She knew he was ticklish, but Steven was ticklish to the point in which if she had continued for much longer he would have combusted. 

“C-Connie! P-Please stop!” Steven begged as he giggled uncontrollably, lying back on the bed and trying his hardest to wiggle away. 

Connie wasn’t going to let him escape, but Steven also wasn’t going to let her win. He suddenly sat up and battled Connie in attempting to get her to lay down on the bed as a way to win against her tickles. Instead, as Connie laid down on her back Steven found himself with his hands either side of her head - looking down at her with wide eyes. 

Connie was speechless as she watched Steven attempt to regain his breath from the amount she had tickled him. She reached up and gently took the snapback off his head, placing it above her on the bed and refusing to disconnect from his eyes. 

Steven didn’t say a word as he gently took off his varsity jacket and placed it in the same vicinity of where she had placed his cap. There was no need for either of them when it was in fact rather hot outside. Suddenly - it was hot inside too. 

There wasn’t a single word exchanged between them both as Steven leant over Connie, shadowing her completely. He slowly leant down and planted his lips against hers softly. Connie closed her eyes allowing herself to be taken away by the kiss. 

Steven pressed his lips together after gently pulling away from the kiss. It had been a few weeks since they had last kissed in such a way that was both passionate and loving. Although he knew exactly what he wanted, he wanted to make sure that Connie wanted the same thing. 

Connie reached up and placed her hands on either side of Steven’s face causing him to open his eyes. She followed his lead, opening her eyes and looking at him as if he was the only other person in existence. There was so much love in that one glance that Connie’s insides crumbled from the look. 

Connie used her hands to practically guide Steven back down to her lips, this time both of them latching on as if it would be the last time they would ever be this close together. Connie slowly sat up, Steven matching her position as he practically knelt on the end of the bed to keep their lips connected. 

This wasn’t quite like the back of Steven’s car - this time was different. Perhaps it didn’t seem quite so special and perhaps the desperate passion wasn’t quite the same - but the kiss itself was full of love and understanding. A love for each other that cut deeper than anything before it. They were loving with their kisses as opposed to being sloppy. 

Steven had been thinking about this moment since the last time they were so close to each other. Thinking about it just as much as any teenage boy would. Kissing a girl? That was certainly an experience that couldn't be matched by anything else. 

Connie gently pulled away, not because she wanted to stop kissing him but because she was desperate to smile on his lips before looking into his eyes. They stared at one another for a moment, Connie's hand slowly slipping from either side of his face and down to his shoulders. Steven had placed his hands once again just above her hips, not wanting to intrude. They held each other as they sat on the end of the bed unable to stop their constant eye contact. 

"Does this count as a birthday gift?" Connie cocked an eyebrow as she shuffled closer before placing her hands together behind his head and playing with his hair. 

He loved it when she touched his hair. It sent a different kind of euphoria through his body. 

"Hmmmhmmm." Steven pressed his lips together and hummed, he was certain he was currently incapable of speech. What had she done to him? 

"Okay, well - that's go-" Connie grinned as Steven kissed her once more, this time too impatient to allow her to finish her sentence. 

Connie didn't mind in the slightest, in fact - it was incredibly flustering to have him take her words away. He was certainly super into kissing and Connie wasn't going to stop him. Especially not on his birthday! 

Connie allowed herself to fall back once again as she found the pressure of Steven's lips a nice kind of heavy. She continued to hold the back of his head, her fingers tangled in the curls of his hair. Steven kept one hand on Connie's hip and the other on the bed to balance himself as he held himself up above her. 

Steven couldn't quite get himself away from the feeling, so caught up in the moment that he realised how badly he wanted to say them three words. Now more than ever. There was nothing he wanted more than to tell Connie that he loved her. 

'Connie, I love you.' 

It was really that simple. Easy. 

Except, it wasn't. 

Steven disconnected his lips for just a moment. Connie suddenly became slightly frustrated that every few moments they wouldn't be together. Connie knew Steven wanted to kiss her - so what was the problem? 

"I-" Steven struggled with his words as Connie looked up at him with anticipation. 

"Are you okay? Is this-" 

“N-no.”

“Did I-”

“No. I just...I-” Steven stumbled on his words. As much as he wanted to say the words he was afraid that they would change everything that he loved about them. Would it have scared her away as Lars had previously stated? 

Connie looked up at Steven with starry eyes. He was so handsome and perfect and she…

She…

“I love you.” The words fell off Connie’s tongue as if that was the only thing she was capable of saying.

Steven blinked rapidly as he stared down at Connie. Did she just say the three words? The three words that had haunted Steven’s thoughts for longer than he had liked to admit. He always thought that inside of his head he would have been the first person to say them and yet they sounded so natural coming from Connie. 

She loved him. 

Connie loved Steven. 

Steven had no words for how he was feeling. He suddenly felt so whole and so loved as he towered over Connie after the passionate kiss. Connie continued to touch the back of his hair as she was suddenly filled with concern that maybe she had said the wrong thing. Had she gotten the wrong idea this whole time? Why wasn’t he responding? 

Steven hoped that Connie hadn’t noticed his breathing exaggerate. He had already been slightly out of breath from all of the kissing - but suddenly he had been winded by the words that she had spoken. It wasn’t as if that was a bad thing, but Steven was struggling to believe the words. 

Steven leant back down and kissed her slowly before smiling on her lips. Connie laughed slightly - knowing that despite Steven being incredibly good with his words that sometimes he just preferred showing his love. 

Connie chuckled as Steven followed her expression, continuing to kiss her repeatedly on the lips. They had never been quite so close before as they stayed with their noses and forehead touching the entire time. Connie kept her hands wrapped around the back of his neck as they laughed happily with each other, unable to let go of their lips. 

Steven had never loved anyone quite like this before. With Connie in his grip, he was having the greatest birthday of his entire life. Considering his previous birthday was spent at home alone in his bedroom a few weeks after being sent home from the hospital in which they believed he was a danger to himself - this was a vast improvement. 

His girlfriend had said that she loved him and he was beyond himself. There was no better moment he could have been in and nothing else could have made him happier. 

Finally, he could tell Connie that he loved her too. He needed to tell her. 

“Connie?” Steven breathed heavily as he detached his lips from hers, still continuing to hold themselves close. 

“Yeah?”

“I love you too.” Steven grinned the words that he had been so desperate to say we're finally free from the very core of his being. 

If he had the opportunity he would have sung his love for Connie from every rooftop in Beach City. He couldn't quite believe he had heard the words from Connie herself and then to have the opportunity to say it back? Steven was beside himself with excitement. 

I love you. 

I love you too. 

What a collection of words. Words that sat deep within Steven causing him an abundance of happiness. It wasn't even as if it was a normal day. Today was his birthday! 

Steven had made out with Connie and confessed his love to her all on the same day.

This was the best day ever! 

Connie smiled back at him, completely engulfed with love for the boy in front of her. She loved him and she could finally admit it. It felt so nice to say it out loud. 

After spending so long running from her parent's ruling over Steven, being with him that day was fantastic. She couldn't have asked for anything more. 

Connie was unsure if saying the words would have been an ideal thing to do. She still had to tell Steven about college and she was terrified she may have broken his heart if she didn't say anything sooner. Although, now was not the time to tell him about what it was she would have been doing after the summer. They needed to live in that moment right there - the one in which they had admitted their love and continued to kiss as if it was the last time they would ever see one another. 

It was strange for either of them to have said the words. It wasn't as if they had said the words to anyone before and meant it. At least not romantically. Sometimes the occasional platonic 'I love you' could be shared with friends, but this was a deep unbreakable love. Romantic attraction. 

Steven had lost himself in the moment, finding himself crashing his lips against Connie's once more. He had so much love for the girl and he wanted to show her. She meant everything to him. 

Connie still felt guilty about only getting him a small gift, but Steven couldn't have been happier with the photo. Although, it wasn't about the photograph. Her words had meant more to him than any kind of materialistic item that she could have brought. 

Those words. 

Three words. 

I love you. 

His heart had melted, he was head over heels for her. Nothing was better than being there with her. 

A girl in a coffee shop? The girl of his dreams. The girl who would forever change his life cemented as his first true love and first kiss. Steven hoped at that moment that she would forever be his one true love. 

“Connie?” Steven spoke softly as he felt Connie’s hand slowly glide across the side of his face. Once again repeating her name.

“Yeah?”

“This is the best birthday I have ever had.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apologies for not getting a chapter out on Monday as planned. Life has been busy and my motivation for this fic has spiralled downwards. 
> 
> I'll continue to update - but the updates may be a little slower than usual. I'll upload as and when I write a new chapter. (As I had originally planned - but then I got super excited and ignored myself hahaha)


	24. Iced Espresso

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven and Connie go for a drive. Connie has something to give Steven that will change the course of their relationship forever...

Steven skipped with a pep in his step as he made his way down the boardwalk. It was such a beautiful day and with so much warmth in his heart, Steven had never been quite so happy. There was a catchy pop song on repeat within his head that he couldn’t help himself but hum. 

The breeze from the ocean swept towards him, trailing through his hair as he skipped along. Steven didn’t quite have a care in the world as he checked the time on his phone before glancing up and staring at the sign at the front of the coffee shop. He smiled widely as he stood outside the front of the shop and sighed heavily with happiness. 

Steven Universe was in love and everything felt so great. 

“Good morning, Lars! Sadie!” Steven shouted as he entered the shop, the rest of the customers in the coffee shop staring up at him in both confusion and anger. Who the heck was this kid? 

“Oh no - he’s happy again.” Lars sighed heavily as he leant against the counter, Sadie stood beside him smiling as she noticed Steven enter in such a way that brightened the room. 

“Oh, hi Steven!” Sadie waved happily as Steven stood by the counter and teetered on his heels. He threw his hands into his pockets and grinned. 

“How are you this lovely day?” Steven’s voice went exceptionally high, causing both Lars and Sadie’s eyes to widen at his energy. Working in a coffee shop was soul-destroying and having customers as happy as Steven didn’t help the matter. It usually only made days worse. Nobody should have been that happy. 

“Woah, what happened to you?” Lars cocked an eyebrow as he placed his elbows on the counter and folded his arms. 

“What?” Steven was quite surprised by Lars’ words. 

“I’ve never seen someone as happy as you are right now - except people blasted out of their minds.” Lars sighed before staring directly at Steven and speaking in a serious tone. “Wait, are you high?”

“No!” Steven furrowed his eyebrows, his expression suddenly dropping. 

He was high - high on life. Nothing could match the love that he was feeling within him. 

“Lars - inappropriate.” Sadie shook her head, there was nothing that she could have done to stop stupid things spilling from his mouth. 

“What? He’s eighteen now. It’s fine.” Lars shrugged. 

Steven had turned eighteen a week or so ago now. It had been one of the best days of his life where Connie had said those three words that had been haunting him for a long time. It felt nice to know that someone loved him for being, well...Steven. 

Despite the sheer amount of internal flaws that he festered away, Connie didn’t mind one bit. It felt really nice to have someone like Connie in his life to reassure him that no matter what she would love him. They would always be together. 

Well, at least throughout the summer. 

It was nearing the end of summer and Steven still hadn’t been told about Connie’s college preparation. Everything had been so last-minute that Connie had gone to visit the college and lied through her teeth when Steven asked where she was going. 

‘Oh, I’m just going to visit some family out of state. I’ll be back.’ 

She texted him whenever she could, although the whole college filled her with wonderment. There was something so satisfying about being able to be somewhere where she could have been whoever she wanted to be regardless of her previous personas. Connie was going to college and that meant that she could have been anyone she wanted. 

Although her parents were still on the fence about Steven Universe, it was nice for them to see that despite her infatuation with him - it wasn’t as if she was willing to give up everything. College was incredibly important to her, but so was Steven. It was okay to have two things to care about and just because she was going away to college that didn’t mean that she had to completely leave Steven behind. 

He had a car. They had the technology. It would have been fine! 

Connie wasn’t quite prepared to give everything she had built around Steven up just yet. She wanted Steven to be okay with the distance and they would at least give it a go and see if it worked in the same way that they had imagined. 

It hurt Connie to know that she still hadn’t gotten the strength within her to tell Steven about the fact she was going to be leaving in less than a month. She believed she was a terrible person for doing so but had absolutely smothered Steven in affection between finding out leading up to the present day. There was a deep pit of guilt that sat within her. 

He wasn’t just a summer romance. 

“She’s getting ready out back.” Lars threw his thumb over his shoulder, knowing exactly why Steven was inside of the coffee shop. It wasn’t as if Steven went in for anything other than Connie now that they had been dating for a while. 

Steven had agreed to take Connie out after she finished work and although it was nowhere special, it was mostly just a drive. Sometimes there wasn’t quite much for either of them to do other than sit in Steven’s bedroom watching trash television or driving around the outskirts of Beach City aimlessly talking about life. The latter of which Connie was finding it really hard to speak about her future plans. 

Steven nodded in confirmation as he readjusted his snapback and walked around the counter towards the door of the storeroom. The room that at first glance he thought was full of employee secrets, the reality being spare napkins and cups. 

“I’m so glad that they found one another. I’ve never seen him so happy.” Sadie sighed as she watched Steven disappear into the storeroom. It was so nice to see Steven Universe in a mood that radiated positive energy. That had always been so caught up with Steven who was ordering sugary drinks to mask the pain. 

He only ever really drank whatever it was that Connie would have made or suggested to him now. It was fine - the other two baristas weren’t completely jealous about Connie’s newfound ability to make coffee.

It didn’t matter. Connie could have served him a cup of dishwater and he would have found it the best drink in the world. There was nothing that could have gone wrong if Connie was part of the process. In Steven’s eyes, she was everything. 

“Blergh. I walked in on them making out twice this week. That’s- man, I think I’m getting too old for this.” Lars complained, feeling a little bit out of sorts with the couple always prancing around in front of him. It made him feel bad on the inside. It made him feel lonely. 

“Yes, old man Lars. I can see that.” Sadie teased as she patted him on the back. 

“That’s not what I meant.” 

“I know.” Sadie smirked as she looked up at Lars. 

Lars smiled back down at her as they stood by the counter. There was so much that he wanted to say to her and yet no matter how many times he had tried to do so he had chickened out at the last moment. He was jealous that Steven was so young and yet he managed to be as smooth as hot chocolate when it came to women. 

When it came to Connie. 

Lars knew that he would have to internalise his feelings further. He was too much of a jerk to Sadie and he knew it. Although, no matter what he did he just couldn’t help but mess up the relationship that they had built together throughout their time working in the coffee shop. 

If not anything else - they had become best friends. 

In a weird way, Lars was okay with that. He spent more time with Sadie than anyone else in his life and he didn’t want to complain about it. Sadie made for a great companion day in day out as he completed tedious tasks throughout the coffee shop. He loved working with her and wouldn’t have minded in the slightest if she never said anything about wanting to date him - ever. 

He was okay with just being her friend if it meant that nothing would have changed between them. He treasured their dynamic and that was something that he certainly didn’t want to ruin. 

As Lars stared down at Sadie and contemplated his life choices, Steven had made his way into the back and was currently staring across the room at Connie. 

As per usual he was completely shocked by the way she looked. It was nice for Connie to have been greeted by Steven as if they hadn’t seen one another in so long that he had forgotten what she had looked like until that very moment. Connie didn’t mind in the slightest. Every time that Steven came to greet her she felt incredibly loved as he practically acted like an excitable puppy whenever she entered the room. 

“Are you ready?” Steven questioned as he pointed a pair of finger guns over towards Connie, incredibly excited for them to have been hanging out with each other. 

Connie was sitting on a bench tying up the laces to a pair of sneakers that she had brought to change into to replace the work shoes that she had been standing in for the past eight hours. Connie looked up at Steven and smiled. 

“Yeah!” Connie grinned as she tightened the shoelace and stood to her feet. 

Steven was standing close by and didn’t hesitate to lean over towards her and kiss her lips quickly. They exchanged a longing stare with one another.

“I made you a tea.” Connie gestured over to the two drinks that were sitting behind her on the bench. 

“Are you ready for our big adventure?” 

“What big adventure?” Connie was suddenly surprised, it wasn’t as if Connie shouldn’t have been expecting a surprise. Steven loved surprises and often had little things planned for both of them to do together. 

It mostly consisted of an activity that ended in them making out - but that was beside the point. 

Teenagers will be teenagers. 

“Don’t get too excited, it’s nothing special.” Steven chuckled as he watched Connie grab the two drinks and pass one of them up to him. Steven held to either side of the tea before taking a sip through the straw. 

“Nothing special?” Connie pouted. 

“Um…” Steven began to panic, his eyes darting to one side as he nervously realised that he didn’t quite have anything special planned. Sure, it was going to be fun - but he wouldn’t have quite considered it as special as some of the other things that they had done together. 

It certainly wasn’t a picnic under the stars. 

Connie couldn’t hold in her small snicker for much longer. It was pretty hilarious to see Steven’s expression drop so dramatically and teasing him had just become second nature. They loved to tease one another. Well, Connie loved to tease Steven at least. 

“It’s okay! It doesn’t have to be special. It’s already special if we’re hanging out.” Connie gently touched his chest to calm him, Steven glancing down at her hand. He was still completely out of sorts whenever she took the time to provide him with physical touch. It felt nice to be loved. 

“Yeah!” Steven chuckled, his panic slowly dissipating. It didn’t matter what they were going to do - as long as they got to be together. That was all they wanted. 

Connie grabbed her bag and led Steven to the exit. He blindly followed as he had done loads of times in the past. He had gotten used to exiting through the back of the coffee shop as if he was some kind of VIP. It felt nice to have access to just about everywhere inside the shop. It made him feel special in comparison to the other customers. 

He was special. 

Parked just outside was Steven’s car - in the usual spot that he found himself in whenever he came to see Connie at work. Well, usually he would have walked. It was more or less if they were planning on going anywhere after work that he would have bought his car. Otherwise, he was very much into the idea of using your car as little as possible. Protect the planet and all. 

“I have a surprise for you.” Connie smiled as they both walked towards the car. 

“Yeah?” Steven questioned as he spun his keys around his finger. 

“Yeah, it’s only a small thing.” Connie attempted to cover up her internal screaming. 

Yes, she had gotten him a gift. Although, it was her way of being able to explain herself to him. Connie had no idea how well that conversation would have gone down, but it was one that she was going to have to have. It had been quite a while now and she still hadn’t told Steven that she was leaving. 

She had to. Today had to be the day. There was no way that she could have put it off any longer. 

She had to tell him about college. 

It was going to break him. There was going to be no good way of being able to tell him which is why she had spent so long attempting to avoid the fact that she would have to tell him eventually. Although, it seemed she had put it off for far too long causing a lot more unnecessary anxiety. 

She had to just...tell him. 

It was going to be difficult, although she thought she had a good way to do it. It was going to be a nice gesture and she hoped that he would have appreciated the effort that she went into. It wasn’t much, but it was certainly a little better than just telling him that she was leaving. 

“Small thing. Big thing. I’m excited!” Steven exclaimed as he unlocked the car and clambered on inside. Connie copied his actions on the opposite side. 

As soon as Steven started the car, Connie began to play around with his radio to find the songs that they both enjoyed listening to in the background as they drove. Steven mostly had cassette tapes in his glove box and Connie occasionally found herself fishing through them to find classic songs that they could have belted out together. 

“So, where are we going today?” Connie asked, not bothering to look up as she concentrated on tuning the radio - the presets had been jumbled. 

“I just said it was a surprise.” Steven jokingly rolled his eyes before smiling over at Connie, she couldn’t see him - but he didn’t mind. 

“You have no idea - do you?” Connie suddenly sat up away from the radio and smirked over at Steven, noticing that he hadn’t started driving like he usually did when he was excited to go anywhere. 

Steven scratched the back of his neck and smiled. 

“Well, no. I just thought we could hang out.” Steven glanced to the side. He knew that Connie would find him being flustered and adorable. As much as it wasn’t his original plan to have no plan, he hoped that it would have worked out for him. 

“Of course, we don’t always have to be doing something y’know? I just want to spend time with you.” 

“I just want to spend time with you too.” Steven confirmed. 

“So, why don’t we just go for a drive?” Connie suggested, thinking that maybe it was the best thing for both of them to do. It didn’t take a lot of effort and it also meant that hopefully they could have pulled over and Connie could have finally bitten the bullet and said what she needed to say. 

“Where do we drive to?”

“Anywhere! That’s the best part.” Connie grinned. Steven wasn’t unfamiliar with the concept of going for a drive. Although he hadn’t done it much when he was with Connie it was something that he practised rather often when he was trying to escape from his home when he started to feel bad about things. It was a good way to get away for a few hours. 

Connie could have gone anywhere with Steven and been happy about it. It was nice to just be within his presence and having that connection was special. 

“Okay, sure - but you better put on some good music.” Steven teased as he nodded towards the glove box. 

“Sure - bet.” 

Connie knew exactly what he was referring to. She opened up his glove box, realising that the radio wouldn’t have provided the ultimate amount of jams for them to sing along to. Instead, she picked up a cassette that had the words ‘For Connie x’ written in Steven’s handwriting on the small sticker that was stuck on the side. 

It had been a tape that Steven had compiled together after he took a mental note of all the songs that they sang together in the car, shouting out all of the lyrics as if their lives depended on it. It was nice to have been able to experience that with someone and Steven didn’t want to experience that with anyone other than Connie. It was a beautiful feeling. 

Of course, Connie had been completely flattered when she noticed the name of the mixtape he had created. She didn’t own a cassette player, so, unfortunately, she couldn’t have taken it home to listen to. Although, she had recreated the mixtape as a playlist on one of the music streaming sites that she used when she was studying. 

It was great to have been able to sing with someone in that environment and having Connie to shout out every single lyric word for word beside Steven was such a great experience. Connie couldn’t help but notice how fantastic Steven was at singing and took note whenever he hit a lot of the high notes within the songs. It seemed as if when he did get into the rhythm that he suddenly became incredibly inclined to scream the words as loud as possible. He really went for it and Connie appreciated his efforts. 

As the car drove down the highway the pair found themselves singing along to every lyric perfectly. It was such a great moment for them both to be in and it made Connie question her morality of not being able to tell him about having to leave for college sooner. 

They drove for what seemed like forever, Connie was slightly concerned that they may have driven too far - but Steven knew exactly where they were. They weren’t that far away from town. They had found themselves in the town over - Ocean Town. 

Steven occasionally came to this side of the town when he had nothing better to do. Ocean Town had a few things that Beach City couldn’t quite accommodate for. It was nice to be able to go over and find somewhere that had something slightly different from what they were used to. 

Connie wasn’t particularly in a mood to walk around a mall or walk along unknown streets trying to find somewhere to eat. Instead, they decided on parking the car and getting some ice cream. It was incredibly simple, but it was cute and they enjoyed the time out together. 

Although, despite the cute gestures there was an overwhelming sense of fear inside of Connie. She knew that the more time that they spent together the closer it came to her having to reveal the gift that she had gotten Steven to go along with the breaking of the news. 

It was silly of her to think that what she was planning would have been a good idea, but it was certainly something. It wasn’t as if she had a choice in the matter - she had to tell him. She just had no idea how to break it. She wanted Steven to be a part of everything she did, so the way in which she was going to break the news was one where he would feel as if he was going to be involved. 

After finishing their ice cream they made their way back to the car where Steven sighed heavily before resting his head against the headrest. Driving could be exhausting. 

“Okay, I really need to speak to you.” Connie spoke so suddenly as she turned in the passenger seat, a look of concern spread across her face. 

Steven turned to look at her, he was worried that her expression could have only meant something bad. He was on cloud nine and he couldn’t have anything going wrong. This was the moment he wanted to live in for the rest of his life. This was everything he had ever wanted and more. With his dad once again out of town and his aunts no longer on his case about every little thing - Steven Universe was free to be himself. 

“What is it?”

“Well...it’s…”

“Are you breaking up with me?” Steven’s eyes suddenly widened, his mind immediately going to the worst place imaginable. 

“What? No! I love you, silly.” Connie chuckled as she leant over and stroked the side of his face with her thumb. The look on his face made Connie realise quite how unsure she would be about him taking the news. 

“Oh. I love you too.” Steven half-smiled as he spoke the words that meant so much to him. It hadn't been long since they had first said the words and each time they said it, the phrasing became easier and easier. 

Connie smiled - he was so sweet!

“It might be easier for me to just give you this gift I got you.” Connie tilted her head before reaching into her bag that was by her feet. There was no way that she was going to be able to speak about what she needed to speak about without the prompt. It was going to be too difficult. 

Steven watched as she reached into the bag and pulled out what looked to be a black piece of clothing. Steven was slightly confused as she handed him the heavy material. He unfolded the item of clothing and held it in front of him. 

It was a black hoodie with a logo across the chest. It looked as if it was in Steven’s size. 

“Woah, this is super cool. Thanks Connie!” Steven was incredibly grateful for the gift, despite not quite knowing the meaning behind it. 

“It’s okay, but-”

“I do have a question. What’s a ‘Jayhawk’?” Steven cocked an eyebrow as he held up the hoodie, unable to stop smiling at the new gift he had been given. Considering he spent all his time in his usual black hoodie, it was nice to add another one to the collection. It would have been great to wear. 

Connie knew this wasn’t the quite so nice part of giving him the gift. Her heart strained at just the thought of breaking the news to him. She didn’t want to do it. She didn’t want to break his heart. 

“It’s the college I’m going to in September.” Connie suddenly admitted.

Steven’s face dropped like a ton of bricks. He stared past Connie for a few moments, processing what she had said. 

“Wait. You got into college?” Steven questioned. 

“Y-yeah.” 

“Connie! That’s so cool! You’re going to college!” Steven suddenly burst into a fit of excitement, more so than what Connie had been when she had received the letter. 

“I managed to get in early. It’s going to be loads of work - but I did it!” Connie smiled, still slightly awkward about Steven’s reaction. He was so supportive. 

“You’re so smart, I don’t know anyone as talented as you are. I can’t believe it. A-are you excited?” 

“Yeah!”

“So, I can just wear this hoodie and then when people ask me what brand it is I can just reply with ‘it’s not a brand, it’s where my girlfriend goes to college’. That’s amazing!” Steven stared back down at the hoodie that he had placed in his lap, tracing his fingers around the embroidered letters. He was completely in shock. 

As someone who never had considered college, he was certainly excited about it. 

“Steven?”

“Yeah?”

“You do realise this means I’m going away - right?” Connie’s expression dropped, it was hard for her to break the news. She didn’t want him to feel hurt about the whole ordeal. She knew it wouldn’t have been a nice experience for him no matter how she phrased it. 

Steven gave Connie a look of confusion before continuing to look at the hoodie. Steven knew exactly what going to college meant, but it was just something that he had been trying to ignore.

It seemed as if no matter how hard Steven tried - everyone in his life just wanted to leave him. Steven’s heart ached at the thought of Connie leaving him just the way as his dad had done time and time again. Sure, his dad always came back - but what if Connie didn’t? 

Sure, she could have been seen as simply a summer romance - but he wanted her to be so much more than that. He wanted to be her boyfriend for as long as time allowed and college could have certainly cut that short. It wouldn’t have been fair and Steven hurt just thinking about it. 

Although Steven was an incredibly supportive person and despite the pain he felt inside of him, he couldn’t help but feel happy for Connie. She had gotten into college and by the looks of it, it seemed to be pretty early. That was impressive - even for Connie. It was such a feat and Steven needed to stay positive about it for her. It was such a good thing. 

“Yeah, I know…” Steven sighed, suddenly allowing the pain he felt to be shown on the outside. 

“You can come and visit me - right?” 

“Yes!” Steven’s eyes widened. There was no way he wouldn’t have been visiting Connie if she were to have moved away. He would try his hardest to be there more often than not, without trying to intrude of course. 

Connie glanced off to the side. She was so worried that Steven was masking how he really felt on the inside. She certainly didn’t want the news to destroy him internally. That was never her intention. If she wasn’t so caught up on college she would have loved to have spent more time with Steven. Although when she went to college that didn’t mean they had to break up. They could still be together. 

Connie worried that Steven wouldn’t have been into a long-distance relationship. Steven was so loving and thrived off their physical interaction. As much as he loved her, he also loved hugs and kisses. It was hard to imagine their relationship without them. 

“There are loads of cool things to do at college. We can always hang out. We could get ice cream too!” Connie suggested, her expression was sympathetic to Steven's situation. She didn’t want to lose him. 

Steven had to see through the negatives of Connie leaving. She was going to college! There was nothing bad about that. 

Except...there was…

How was Steven going to cope? He was back to square one. Alone. What was the point of spending the whole summer together when in less than two weeks she was going to be going away for what seemed like forever? Steven was internally distraught, but he couldn't let Connie see his pain. This wasn't about him. 

"That sounds nice." Steven smiled. She was going to leave him. She was going to go to college and meet an abundance of new friends and there was nothing there to stop her. Steven was going to be left behind. She would find another...boyfriend. 

"Are you sure you're okay?" Connie furrowed her eyebrows as she noticed the distant stare in Steven's eyes. His expression was vacant. 

Connie reached over and touched his hand that was balanced carefully on the new hoodie. Her touch brought him out of the trance, forcing him to look up at her with wide eyes. 

"I'm okay." Steven lied with a wide smile. 

"I'm not going to leave you - you know that, right?" 

She was going to leave him. That was the problem. Steven was terrified. 

"Hm…" 

"Steven?" 

Steven didn't want to admit his fears, he was actually slightly more afraid that by admitting them Connie would have felt guilty about leaving. He didn't want that. 

"I'm excited, Connie. This is a really big adventure for you. You're going to do great." Steven grinned, swallowing all his fears. He had to see through it all to be supportive for Connie's sake. This was a good thing. This was a great thing. 

Connie smiled, she loved hearing the supportive words - especially from Steven. It felt nice to receive his reassurance. 

“Thanks.” 

Steven smiled back at Connie, swallowing hard as he thought about the words that she had spoken so quickly and so casually. 

Weeks. She was going to be gone in weeks. 

Steven’s heart began to crumble...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, we're nearly at the end of the coffee shop AU...
> 
> Let's keep these coffees HOT.


	25. Is That Everything?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “What I’m trying to say is...sometimes it’s worth waiting for a decent cup of coffee.”

“Are you dead?” Lars poked Steven’s arm aggressively.

Steven groaned heavily in response, his head buried in his arms as he covered his face against the table at the back of the coffee shop. The emptiness within him was unmatched and he hadn’t moved in over an hour. His stomach hurt, but it wasn’t just because of the sickly drink that he had consumed. 

“Steven, are you okay?” Sadie sat beside him in the booth, attempting to console him. The coffee shop was incredibly quiet, Lars and Sadie had taken the one time they had without customers to see how Steven was doing. 

Steven mumbled something inaudible, refusing to lift his head. The snapback had fallen from his head and was currently sitting on the table in front of him. He didn’t care. He didn’t quite care about anything anymore. 

“Dude, she’s coming back!” Lars gave little support to the situation. 

“Do you want me to get you another drink? I’ll make this one on the house. What do you say?” Sadie questioned, patting Steven on the back still unable to see his face. 

“No thank you.” Steven mumbled into the table, he was incredibly grateful for Sadie’s offer, but he couldn’t bring himself to drink anything else. He was too distraught. 

Lars stared down at Steven, frustrated that he had been sat there for over an hour wallowing in his own sadness. It certainly wasn’t a good look for other customers and Lars was growing impatient with his tone. He didn’t quite understand why Steven was so upset - had he not known about this for weeks? 

“Did she break up with you?” Lars asked, genuinely concerned that the way Steven was feeling was due to valid reasoning. 

“No…” Steven spoke into his jacket, his face now incredibly warm between his sleeves and the table. 

“So, what’s the problem?”

"She's going away forever..." 

"She's not dead. She's going to college." Lars explained, somehow not making Steven feel any better in the process. 

Lars and Sadie knew a long time about Connie's plans. Originally, Connie desperately wanted to ask if she could have kept the job. At least perhaps one day on the weekend after the summer was over. However, now that she was moving it wasn't something that she could have done. 

Steven lifted his head to reveal his red face. Although he wasn't currently crying, it was clear he had previously been sobbing to himself about the whole scenario. He just couldn't wrap his head around it and no matter what he thought about on the subject it made him feel horrible inside. 

Steven hadn't slept. He had barely eaten anything. It wasn't the same kind of pain he had felt last year, this time it was a soul-crushing pain of fear and abandonment. He didn't want to feel this way, only feeling as if he would have held Connie back. He didn't want to do that to her. That wasn't fair. 

"What if she never comes back?" 

"Oh, Steven. She'll come back! You'll just have to wait until she gets a break and then you can see her. If she hasn't broken up with you - that's a good sign!" Sadie attempted to reassure the teen. 

Sure, Connie hadn't broken his heart, but that didn't mean he wasn't heartbroken. Steven's entire body ached at the thought of Connie leaving. Just moments ago everything had been perfect and yet within days, things were incredibly different. 

Their new romance hadn't been going on for long, but it had gone on long enough for Steven to fall deeply in love with her. He loved her more than words could express and wanted nothing more than to be with her every second of the day. 

Going to college meant going away and going away meant that Steven couldn't have been with her even if he wanted to. 

Sadie's words were correct. He hated that they were correct. He needed to get himself back into his life of being where he was happy and content. He needed to be happy - for Connie's sake. 

Connie had already agreed to go over Steven’s in the late afternoon so that they could speak about everything that was going on between them. Well, they had set it up as a movie afternoon - but Steven knew that it would have mostly been about what was going to be happening soon. Steven was terrified of what kind of content the conversation may have held, but he knew it wouldn’t have been good. 

He had made his way to the coffee shop as a way of getting away from his own thoughts and feelings. It didn’t quite help but felt a lot better than being sat inside his bedroom doing the same thing. He probably couldn’t have been alone anyway. That wasn’t healthy. 

As it was Connie’s day off, he knew that she wouldn’t have come anywhere near the coffee shop unless she really had to. Connie found solace in making sure that she separated her work life from the one of pleasure. However, after meeting Steven whilst being at work that pretty much threw out that unwritten rule. 

“What if she’s still planning on breaking up with me?” Steven panicked. It really was his current deepest fear that had taken over his entire mind. It was eating him from the inside out. 

Lars leant forward on the table and cocked an eyebrow down at Steven. He was incredibly intimidating. 

“I have never seen anyone love someone as much as she loves you. Shut up, Steven - it’s going to be fine.” Lars’ words were abrupt and yet he spoke the complete truth. Steven stared up at Lars who was hovering over him with furrowed eyebrows. 

Steven gulped slightly, not quite expecting Lars to have been so abrupt. He did, however, need to learn to listen to the people who spent most of their time with Connie when he wasn’t around. Steven had no idea how Connie acted in her day to day work life and that was a huge chunk of her life to have missed out on. He should have taken Lars and Sadie’s advice on everything, considering they had spent more time around her than he had. 

“Thanks?” Steven was unsure whether or not Lars’ words were supportive or not, but he very much appreciated them anyway. It didn’t quite matter how he saw it. He knew his outlook would have always been incredibly negative. 

“Connie speaks about you more than, well...Lars would like. She would never do anything to hurt you, Steven. Although, she is incredibly passionate about going to college and has worked insanely hard to get where she is. I would never have been able to achieve any of that academically.” Sadie explained. 

“She’s smart. Really smart.” Lars added, continually impressed with Connie’s intelligence. As someone who had no idea about coffee when they had first started working in the shop, Connie had picked up on everything incredibly quickly. It had even impressed Lars, who had been working there the better part of at least four years. 

Steven nodded, agreeing with everything they were saying. He vastly appreciated their efforts to cheer him up. It was incredible that the people who he could always look towards for answers were still there for him in some of his toughest moments. Even though they didn’t quite know much about what they had done for him throughout the years, he appreciated them a lot. 

“Thank you.” Steven croaked, a small smile creeping up the sides of his face. Despite feeling incredibly bad inside of himself, being around them and their kind words had cheered him up. He just wished there had been fewer people inside of the shop sooner so that they could have cheered him up earlier on. 

“Well, what are you waiting for? Don’t you have to go and get ready so you can watch a movie?” Lars questioned, as much as he didn’t want to tell Steven he looked like a blubbering mess - he did. 

Steven nodded as he stood up and brushed off his jacket, having previously told them about his afternoon plans. Lars and Sadie noticed that he was wearing the Jayhawk hoodie that Connie had gotten him. It sat comfortably underneath the open varsity jacket. He hadn’t taken it off since she had given it to him, a reminder of the future and yet one that he needed to still be close to her. 

Steven swiftly said goodbye to them both, there weren't many further words exchanged between them all, but there was enough to show each other that they cared about Steven’s cause. He was going to spend the evening with Connie and it was going to be great, regardless of what kind of movie they would end up watching. 

It hurt Steven to know that hanging out with Connie that evening was going to be one of the last times that he would have been able to hang with her so easily. Other than that, he would have had to travel a couple hundred miles as a way to hang out with her in the future. That wouldn’t have been very good. 

Steven paced around the house in the Jayhawk hoodie, pulling the hood over his head and pulling tightly on the strings as he walked back and forth in his bedroom. He was nervous for Connie to have come round his house for what could have quite possibly been the last time that they were together. There were still thoughts running through his mind about her breaking up with him so that she could have lived her best life when she was at college. 

It would have been the best way to disconnect from someone and Steven was terrified that with their last meeting she would have dropped the bomb on him like a ton of bricks. Steven’s heart practically jumped out of his chest when he heard the knock on the door. He needed to pretend he hadn’t heard the door, that way he wouldn’t have had to greet her at the door downstairs. He would simply wait for one of his aunts to answer. 

“Oh, Connie. It’s so nice to see you!” Steven listened as Pearl opened the door, following along with his internal plan of avoidance. 

“Hi Pearl! Is Steven home?” Connie questioned, knowing for well the answer would have been a straight yes. She had already texted him about this evening several times. He wouldn’t have missed out on movie night. 

“As always - he just takes permanent residence in his bedroom. Feel free to head on up.” Pearl instructed as she opened up the door for Connie and gestured towards the stairs. 

“Thank you!” Connie was incredibly polite and each and every one of Steven’s aunts appreciated her very much. Steven hadn’t even broken the news to them that she would have been going away, afraid that by mentioning it they would have been concerned about what Connie leaving would have done to his mental health. 

They would have thrown him in therapy again. 

Steven heard Connie’s footsteps coming up the stairs. He pulled the hood from over his head, desperately trying to get the two strings to the same length. He panicked, growing frustrated with the strings as he pulled the hood back in a desperate attempt to get it back to what it once was. Just as Connie took the last step up the stairs he brushed off the hoodie and smiled.

“Hi!” Steven grinned, not quite knowing how else to greet her. He felt somewhat awkward about being around her after everything that had happened between them. He already felt as if they had broken up and now they were stood in a room together trying to make up. 

It felt weird. It felt horrible. 

He didn’t want her to go. 

“Hey! I see you’re still wearing the hoodie.” Connie pointed towards the Jayhawk hoodie. Steven looked incredibly cute in just the hoodie and his cuffed jeans. No varsity jacket. No snapback. Just Steven. 

“Oh yeah, it’s super comfy. Thank you!” Steven glanced down at the hoodie as he pulled it out in front of him to show off the design on the front. 

“I’m just glad you like it. You’ll fit right in when you come and visit.” Connie chuckled, unsure whether or not her slight joke would have taken things too far within Steven’s mind. She certainly wanted him to come and visit and if he were to wear the hoodie that certainly would have been a bonus. 

“Yeah…” Steven laughed awkwardly before sitting himself down on the edge of his bed, playing with the cuffs of the hoodie. 

“So, what are we watching?” Connie came and sat beside Steven on the edge of the bed, placing the small backpack she was holding onto the floor beside her feet. 

“What do you want to watch?” 

“I’m in the mood for something so trashy that we can both critique it seriously and make fun of it intensely.” Connie explained with a smile, attempting to avoid the elephant in the room that had been eating away at both of them since Connie had spoken to him about it. 

As much as Steven wanted to watch a trashy film with Connie, he knew that he would have found it hard to concentrate on it. Despite that, he thought perhaps a movie could have taken his mind off everything. Especially if he got to spend the evening beside Connie laughing at the television. 

“Sure, I’ll boot up FlixFlix.” Steven agreed, shuffling himself backwards so that he was against his bed’s headboard. He reached for the remote as Connie kicked off her shoes and took her place beside Steven on the bed facing the television. 

They had gotten used to watching television together. This meant watching movies and all of the trashiest television you could imagine. They loved watching reality television simply just to make fun of the insane lifestyles that people lead. Most of which were staged and incredibly inaccurate depictions of reality. 

They quickly decided on what they considered one of the trashiest movies that they would ever witness, simply from the reviews and the trailer that they have briefly started before the film. Connie didn’t hesitate to cuddle up to Steven as if it was second nature to do so. 

Although it was something that Steven used to get incredibly flustered about, he loved it when they were this close. It made him feel incredibly good about their relationship, however, this time the only thing he could think about was how this was potentially the last time that he would have been able to cuddle with her like this in a long time or maybe even...forever. 

After the movie had finished, Connie didn’t move away from under his arm - still clinging onto his chest as if she never wanted to let go. She mumbled some words about the movie before eventually sitting up and taking a good look at Steven who had tried hiding his tears throughout the whole movie. 

Of course, the movie was incredibly trashy. Although, he hadn’t quite expected it to have been a romance where the lead went away for the good of the other character at the end. Connie thought that perhaps the choice of movie hadn’t exactly been the best, although she hadn’t quite predicted that ending. That was awkward. 

“Connie?” Steven had just about everything on his mind and wanted to spill his thoughts. He was finding it hard to fathom just about how much he hurt within about the whole scenario. 

“Yeah?” Connie laid down on her front beside Steven, looking up at him with wide eyes. She was beautiful. 

“We haven’t really spoken about it…” Steven pushed his hands together, intertwining his fingers. 

“What?” Connie wasn’t stupid, she knew exactly what he was going to be talking about. It was more or less the case of confirmation and avoidance. 

“College.” Steven looked down at her with a sad expression. As much as he was excited about Connie going off to college, he wanted to speak about it with her. He wasn’t being fair on himself by not doing anything about it. He was torturing himself. 

“What do you want to talk about?” Connie was curious to know what he was referring to. 

“Well, y’know, what happens to...us?” Steven looked away as he spoke. 

Connie sat up in response, wanting to be close to Steven as she spoke. She didn’t want them to spend a second apart, let alone being away from one another for a prolonged period of time. She didn’t want to have to leave him, but that was just what was going to have to happen regardless of whether or not they wanted that for each other or not. 

“Nothing...happens.” 

“B-but...it’s not going to be the same though. Is it?” 

“Well, it won’t be the exact same - but I’ll still be there. We can still call, text and I’ll be in Beach City sometimes to see my parents. We can hang out then! Besides, you can come and see me too. I’ll always try and clear my calendar.” Connie smiled as she spoke, there was confidence in her words as if this was something that she had already thought about a great deal. 

She had. She had spent many sleepless nights trying to think about how she was going to be able to tell Steven the heartbreaking news. This was exactly what she was worried about happening. 

It wouldn’t be the same though and Steven knew it. He would always have tried to make an effort, but things were going to be like they were throughout the summer. Steven had put so much effort and poured so much time into loving Connie over the last couple of months that he was finding it hard to envision doing much else. 

“It’s just…” 

“What is it?” Connie shuffled closer towards him once more, this time using her finger to lift up his chin, forcing him to look directly at her. He still managed to look away, not quite ready to face her just yet. 

“I’m going to miss you. Really bad.” Steven’s expression dropped, he was incredibly sad to be admitting quite a thing - but he couldn’t help himself. He was sad about it and he was going to continue to be sad about it no matter what. 

Connie smiled slightly. It felt nice to know that Steven cared about her as much as he did. It was good to be cared for and hearing it from Steven was a different kind of love. She leant forward and kissed his lips softly, a sure reminder that she was still there. Connie didn’t want to go anywhere. 

“I’m going to miss you really bad too.” Connie whispered as she pulled away from the kiss. Her words felt somewhat grammatically incorrect, but she knew she had to quote Steven. 

“I don’t want you to leave.” Steven admitted, no longer having quite the supportive and positive attitude that he had when she had told him. 

“I know, but I have to.” Connie gave Steven a sad expression. 

“I don’t like college.” Steven pouted, suddenly so against the idea of education. Education meant that they couldn’t do the things that they wanted to do. 

“You’ve never been.”

“Neither have you.”

“Okay, that’s fair.” Connie snorted at Steven’s attempt to sway her away from her educational pursuit. 

“You’re going to be really good at college.” Steven smiled, despite his pain for her leaving he was still willing to be supportive. This was an incredibly important part of his life. 

“It’s kind of what I’ve been working towards for a long time. I really hope that I’m good at it.” Connie blushed slightly. 

“You will be! I don’t know much about education, but what I do know is that you’re great at it and you managed to get in super early. That’s amazing.” 

“Look, I know you said that you would be okay with this - but I’m really worried about you.” Connie suddenly burst out her feelings. The same feelings that she had on her mind since she had opened the letter from Jayhawk stating that she had a place. 

They needed to talk things through and she wanted Steven to be truthful with her. However, that wasn’t exactly the best thing. Connie couldn't quite be that hypocritical on the situation considering she had spent a long time avoiding telling Steven. Steven knew that Connie had probably found out about going to college a lot sooner than he had been told, but that didn’t hurt him as much as he thought it would have done. The idea of her leaving irked him more. 

“Don’t worry about me. There’s no point.” Steven snorted as Connie gripped onto both of his hands that had found their way to his lap. 

“I’m always going to worry about you. It doesn’t matter where I am in the country - you’ll always be on my mind.” Connie smiled along with a small laugh. Everything she was saying was true, she certainly was going to worry about Steven. She had already spent a lot of time worrying about their relationship and how things were going to play out once she had gone away. Although, it wasn’t only that - she knew how upset Steven could become. 

Connie didn’t completely know about his past. Steven still hadn’t told her about the time in which he tried to…

He couldn’t bring himself to scare her like that and now was a worst time more than ever to bring up something so heavy. Perhaps some things were better left in the past? She didn’t need to know. It wouldn’t have changed anything between them other than Connie panicking even more and feeling guilty about leaving him behind and he certainly didn’t want that for her. 

“You’re not going to go to college and forget about me, right?” 

“Oh Steven, how could I forget about you?” Connie tilted her head, using her thumbs to rub the tops of his hands as she held them gently. 

“I’m not-”

“You’re everything to me. The boy who stumbled into the coffee shop and ordered a silly drink. The boy who I spilt coffee over and I felt so guilty that I had to chase you down to say sorry. The boy who took me to a concert and got me to dance in public! The boy who took me to the most beautiful place in Beach City. The boy who got punched in the face after a super fun game of beer pong. The boy who made out with me in the backseat of his car.” Connie blushed slightest before continuing. “The boy who won over my parents. The boy who took me to so many places and on so many dates that I can’t even begin to imagine my summer without you. The boy who calls me his girlfriend. The boy who despite being incredibly worried about this whole crazy college thing is still super supportive no matter what.” 

Steven stared into Connie’s eyes as she spoke, completely entranced by the way her mouth moved as she spoke every sentence about him so softly. He knew that she meant every word and struggled not to cry. Connie couldn’t look away as she stared back at him with wide eyes. 

“I love you, Steven. College isn’t ever going to change that.” Connie spoke with such confidence, her words sinking into Steven’s mind gently. 

She loved him and he knew it. No matter what. It didn’t matter if she was going to be halfway across the country in college - she loved him. Love made people do strange things and Connie would have gone above and beyond to make sure that even if she was in college, she could have still had her relationship with Steven. 

Connie loved Steven and education wouldn’t change it. A couple of hundred miles between them wouldn’t change it either. As much as Steven craved physical affection, he could quite easily have waited months if he knew that at the very end of it all he would have been able to hold her. 

Her words were so sweet and loving. There was nothing that Steven could have said to quite match the way that she had made him feel. She was once just the barista in his favourite coffee shop and now she meant so much more to him than someone who cocked an eyebrow whenever he ordered. 

“Thank you.” Steven’s entire expression changed from one of great sadness and confusion to one of gratitude. Connie was surprised he didn’t respond with an ‘I love you too’. 

“What for?” 

“For making me realise that some things are worth sticking around for. Sometimes, life can be really bad - but it’s not bad forever.” Steven smiled as he lifted his hand to the side of Connie’s face, making sure that they were looking directly at one another. 

“Oh…”

“What I’m trying to say is...sometimes it’s worth waiting for a decent cup of coffee.” Steven chuckled, his face turning red at the comment. 

Connie began to laugh at Steven’s comment, although it was incredibly relevant to their relationship she couldn’t help but chuckle. 

“You’re such a dork!” Connie giggled as she pushed him gently in the chest. His words were so incredibly thoughtful and yet so cheesy that she loved everything he spoke about. 

“Hey! Your words were cheesy too!” Steven snorted as he held onto Connie gently. 

They looked at one another once more, still trying to recover from their laughter. Although they had such a sentimental moment, it was down to both of them to make it hilarious. They were both at fault for ruining such a special moment. They didn’t believe either of them had ruined it one bit. This was exactly how they wanted it. 

“I really don’t want to leave you.” Connie admitted, gazing into his eyes and allowing them to take her away to a place unknown. 

“You’re not leaving me. You’re just going to be somewhere different.” Steven nodded, slowly coming to an understanding of what was going to happen between them both. He understood it all now. Love could happen anywhere. 

They could have made it work. They were going to make it work! They were going to have a long-distance relationship and everything was going to be okay. They loved each other no matter how far away they were going to be. 

“That’s...beautiful.” Connie smiled at his words. 

“You’re beautiful.” Steven corrected. 

“Steven…” Connie groaned jokingly. 

“Connie…” 

“We’re going to make this work, okay?” 

“We’re going to make this work.” Steven nodded.

Steven looked at her with bright and hopeful eyes before leaning forward and planting a gentle kiss against her lips. Connie closed her eyes, allowing herself to fall deeply in love all over again. Despite being short-lived - the kiss was perfect. 

“I like you a latte.” Steven smiled as he removed himself from the kiss. 

“Did you ju-”

“Words cannot espresso how much you mean to me.”

“Steven, no.” Connie began to chuckle. 

“Where have you bean all my life?” Steven couldn’t help but smirk at his horrible puns, realising quite how irritatingly funny he was. 

“Steven…”

“Yeah?”

“No more coffee puns.” Connie laughed before kissing him on the lips once more to stop him from talking any more. 

“Okay, fine - no more coffee puns...” Steven repeated as he smiled on her lips.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, this is the penultimate chapter. Will be wrapping things up with an epilogue soon...
> 
> I really hope everyone has loved A Decent Cup of Coffee and I thank you all from the bottom of my heart for reading it. Every comment has made me smile - you guys seriously rock and I can't wait to share with you what I have lined up next!


	26. Thanks. Enjoy The Rest of Your Day!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's been nearly a year since Connie left for college. 
> 
> Once again, it's time for summer!

Just under a year later…

It was a somewhat sunny day in Beach City as Connie made her way down the familiar boardwalk that she had only seen every couple of months over what was nearly a whole year of being in college. Everything was going so well, it was hard to imagine a time in which things weren’t going Connie’s way. 

College had been perfect - in more ways than one. There had only been one thing that was missing…

Connie pushed the all too familiar door open to the coffee shop, suddenly being hit with a reminiscent smell that she had been surrounded by last summer. Connie took a deep breath in and held the familiar scent close. It felt good to be home. 

Connie held a white envelope to her chest as she stepped through the coffee shop, suddenly being thrown back to one of the best summers of her entire life. She loved working in the coffee shop and was sad that she couldn’t have taken the job with her when she went to college in a different state. 

Connie made her way over to the counter, not quite seeing anyone behind it at first glance until suddenly a barista appeared out of nowhere, sliding his elbows across the counter as he unprofessionally leant his chin on his hand. 

“What can I get for you today, ma’am?” The barista smiled, looking as cute as ever. The ‘Beach City Coffee’ cap sat perfectly on the top of his unruly hair, already completely flattened by his usual stylistic choices. 

“Oh, I don’t know - a mocha frappe?” Connie tried her hardest not to giggle, keeping herself completely in character. 

“Good choice...is that everything?” The barista continued to lean his head on the top of his hand, staring flirtatiously into her eyes. It was incredibly unprofessional to fall in love with your customers in a coffee shop - but it didn’t seem to stop either of them from doing so.

The damage had already been done last summer. 

Connie pondered for a moment, staring up at the menu above his head that hadn’t changed one bit from when she had worked there. She still remembered to make all of the drinks herself and if she had the confidence she would have been inclined to crawl over the counter and make something herself. 

“I heard they do really good kisses here...” Connie leant forward on the counter and whispered. 

The barista suddenly found himself blushing at the comment, standing up straight, lifting the cap off the top of his head and running his hand through his hair. 

“I-I can get that for you.” He smiled nervously as if the request was something that he hadn’t completed numerous times in the past. 

Connie couldn’t help but chuckle as she watched the barista fluster, suddenly spiralling into a panic as he went to make the drink. Connie found herself leaning on the counter awaiting her order as the barista darted around. There was suddenly another barista that came into view, stepped over to the counter with his arms folded. 

“Hi, Lars!” Connie smiled as he walked towards her, somewhat happy to see the ex-co-worker. 

“Look who it is, college Connie!” Lars smirked, still incredibly impressed with the girl’s smarts that she had shown time and time again. 

“Yeah, college is pretty intense. It’s fun though! You'd like the party side of things.” Connie admitted, realising quite how much work she had to put into college was beyond her. It meant that she found very little time to do much else - but it was completely worth it. College was a lot of fun, even with a vast amount of workload. 

Being so young and being at college also meant she had a lot of advantages over others. It often left her far behind in social aspects and yet excelled her forward when it came to work. She didn’t mind one bit and regardless of everything she was still enjoying attending. 

“So, are you staying in Beach City for the summer?” Lars struck a conversation. 

“Yeah...which is why I wanted to ask a favour…” Connie placed the envelope on the counter and pushed it over to Lars. 

“What’s this?” 

“My resume.”

“But you’ve only ever worked here…” Lars cocked an eyebrow as he picked up the envelope. 

“It’s a professional courtesy, Lars.” Connie sighed with a smile as he unfolded the piece of paper that was inside the envelope. He quickly scanned his eyes over the paper before pouting his lip and staring directly at Connie. 

“Well, you do seem pretty qualified for the position.” Lars nodded.

“Really? I never would have guessed.” Connie sarcastically rolled her eyes. 

“I mean, I’ll have to talk to the bossman since we’ve had dorky back there employed nearly all year. I’m surprised they even agreed to replace you after the summer ended, but I can’t say I’m not grateful for it. I’ll pass it up to him and see what they say, last summer was our busiest summer yet and we wouldn’t have been able to do it without you.” Lars folded up the piece of paper and placed it back inside of the envelope before pushing it underneath the counter for future reference. 

“I’m up for anything. I just want something to fill my summer that isn’t college work.” Connie tittered, desperately wanting a break from staring at a page all day attempting to absorb information. 

“I’m pretty certain Steven would be happy to fill that void.” Lars sighed, having spent an incredibly long time working with the teenager he had come to realise that yes, Steven is a super annoying individual - but so was Lars. They were both as bad as one another and that’s what made their dynamic work. 

Connie glanced over the counter and watched Steven stick his tongue out slightly as he concentrated on squirting cream through the top of the plastic cup to make the perfect frappe. He had to get it right, especially for Connie. 

Admittedly, over the time that Steven had spent in the coffee shop, he had gotten incredibly good at making all of the drinks. He had spent a longer period of time working in the coffee shop than Connie ever got a chance to do, which meant that his skillset had far exceeded hers. Although, it wouldn’t have taken Connie to learn all of the fancy new skills that he had found himself practising over and over to get right. 

“Order for…” Steven jokingly squinted at the side of the cup. “Connie!” 

Connie walked over to the counter that they usually used for collection, glancing down at the mocha frappe that he had so perfectly put ample amounts of effort into creating. It looked perfect. Steven had really made sure that everything he did was with such care and precision. 

“Aren’t you forgetting the other half of my order?” Connie smirked. 

“Well, I think that’s something I’d have to go out back to get.” Steven threw his thumb over his shoulder, referring to the back room before gently tugging on his collar. 

“I think I’m going to follow you - in case you get lost out there.” Connie winked, sending shivers down Steven’s spine as if this was the first time she had flirted with him. Their constant exchanges were sweet and after spending the last three weeks only being able to see one another over video call this was something they both desperately wanted. 

“Sure. Lars, I’m going on my break.” Steven suddenly instructed. 

“Yep. Okay. I really hope I don’t have to go out back within the next five minutes because if you both permanently damage my eyesight I will never forgive you.” Lars sighed, the only issue being if they were both to have worked in the coffee shop - all of their breaks would have consisted of them making out in the back. 

“Sure. That’s fair.” Connie shrugged as she left the mocha frappe on the countertop and made her way around to the hatch. 

Steven held out his hand and Connie was quick to grab onto it, allowing him to drag her past Lars as she smiled and waved. As soon as they entered the back room and the door shut behind them, Steven spun on his heel and threw his arms around Connie, picking her up in the process and causing her to giggle. 

“You’re home for the summer!” Steven was beyond excited to have Connie back in Beach City. 

The year hadn’t been quite so lonely as Steven had expected it to have been. He often found himself driving a few hours so that he could have visited Connie when she was in college. Not only that, but Connie often came down to Beach City to see her parents. It wasn’t as if they were apart the whole time - they still managed to see one another frequently. 

That didn’t quite include the amount of time that they had spent on phone calls and video calls with one another until late at night. It felt nice to still be as close to Connie as he was last summer. Steven still loved her beyond belief and thinking anything else would have been a mistake on his part. 

He wanted to be with her more than anything. 

So much so that he had picked up the job in an attempt to save as much money as he possibly could. Steven’s plan was to eventually find somewhere to stay nearer Connie’s college. It wasn’t quite just about being with Connie, but that was what it felt like for the most part. 

There wasn’t anything left for Steven in Beach City other than his family. After discovering how easy it was to go back and forth between the states, he knew that if he were to move away it wouldn’t have been too much hassle to have gone back and forth to see his family. If Connie managed to do it every couple of weeks then Steven certainly could have done it with his family too. 

It wasn’t as if his dad was always in Beach City anyway and could have even chosen to pass through wherever it was that Steven decided to settle down. It would have been nice no matter where it was that he decided to stay. It seemed as if anything but Beach City would have been a better option. 

He had discussed the topic with his aunts on several occasions and although they hadn’t quite warmed up to the idea at first, Steven had made them a few promises to ease their mind. He had currently been in therapy for the better part of three quarters of the year. He was making fantastic progress and although his aunts were still incredibly concerned for his well being if he were to live alone - having been in therapy for that long and having stuck to it meant that he was committed to getting better. 

It was true - Steven was more than ready to make sure that he continued to get better. Meeting Connie had inspired him to make sure that he was in a better mental space no matter what. It didn’t matter if he was happy or sad, it was important to get support for his mental health. Especially after what had occurred to him in the previous year. It was for the best. 

Connie gripped onto either side of Steven’s face and chuckled as he held her up. She leant downwards and planted a soft kiss on his lips - something that she had been missing out on for the past couple of weeks. Steven’s audible kissing noise at the end of a video call was nowhere near as good as the real thing. 

“I’ve missed you.” Connie whispered as Steven gently allowed her to find her feet once more. 

“I missed you too!” Steven smiled as she moved away from his lips to get a better look at the teenager. He was just how she had remembered him from last summer. Just how she had remembered him from three weeks ago when they had last met up. 

“How long is it now until you’ve got enough?” Connie slowly allowed her hands to drop from either of his face to his shoulders. 

“Until the end of summer - then I’ll have enough.” 

“That’s not long!”

“Then I’ll be able to see you all the time!” Steven grinned, overly excited for being able to see Connie whenever his heart desired. He was saving up to move out somewhere closer to Connie’s college and was nearly at a point in which he could begin considering it. 

He had been working incredibly hard to get as much money as he possibly could to fund his pursuit of moving away from Beach City. It wasn’t as if he was desperate to go away, but he sure was excited about being able to go somewhere to live independently. He had gotten to that point in his life where that was all he could think about. The ability to have independence in both his life and the actions that he committed. 

“I can’t wait! We’ve got the whole summer together too!” Connie smiled, after experiencing the best summer of her life the previous year she just knew that this one would have been fantastic too. 

Half of the summer last year was both of them considering whether or not they should have told one another if they loved the other. It was a summer well spent after going on adventures that ranged from flirtatious picnics to Steven being punched in the face by some self-entitled college kid. They were memories that they both held dear and without them, they wouldn’t have been as close as they were now. 

Even Connie’s parents had been overly accepting of Steven throughout the summer and even accepted his presence throughout the time that Connie had been in college. Of course, they didn’t quite approve of Steven spending the night in Connie’s dorm room - but they didn’t need to know how often that truly happened. They were allowed some secrets. 

Connie found it strange seeing Steven in the Beach City Coffee uniform, but it most certainly suited him. If anyone were to have taken the position at the coffee shop it should have been Steven. He had spent the most time in the coffee shop as a customer - enough time that he was probably more qualified to be a barista before Connie even considered the position. He had spent so long sitting inside of the coffee shop listening to orders that it was hard for him not to have remembered half of them. 

Steven had considered that once he had tried his hardest to move nearer Connie’s college that he would once again try and find another job to help support himself. Not only that, but Connie had spoken to him about some classes that he could have taken at the college a couple of times a week to keep his mind occupied. 

Steven was pretty welcoming to the suggestion and had asked Connie to see if there was anything that she believed he may have been interested in. Connie had pulled up a few and Steven had confirmed that he would look into it further. It would have been good to have picked up some knowledge whilst he was there. 

He had the world at his fingertips and he needed to learn how to use it. 

“So, did you hand in your resume?” Steven questioned, interested to know whether or not he would have been spending the summer working alongside his girlfriend. 

There would have been a lot of people in the world screaming at Steven that working the same job as his girlfriend came with some risks. Although, Steven saw it as an ample opportunity to spend more time with Connie. It wasn’t as if he didn’t spend all of his time hanging out in the coffee shop anyway, it would have just meant he would have gotten paid for doing so. 

“I did.” 

“Did you get the job?”

“Lars has to ask first. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to as you’re already working here. You know how they are with getting more people in.” Connie rolled her eyes, reminiscing on how understaffed they were at some points during last summer. It had become pretty painful when things got insanely busy. 

“I hope you get to work here with me - it would be so cool!” Steven grinned, incredibly excited for Lars’ answer. 

Lars and Sadie had sung Connie’s praises all year and Steven never got fed up of hearing about them. He continuously asked what Connie was like when she worked there and Sadie was happy to provide him with stories that she hadn’t shared with him before. She had only been working there throughout the summer and yet Sadie had an abundance of stories relating to Connie that usually involved irate customers complaining about their coffee being too hot. 

“I can’t help but feel you might be a distraction for me…” Connie laughed as she locked her fingers together at the back of his neck. 

“I was already a distraction - just now I’m just in uniform.” Steven chuckled accompanied by a small shrug. 

“Valid point.” 

“Maybe you’ll be my distraction?” 

“Hm, yeah - I can see that.” Connie snorted, knowing for well that Steven could become sidetracked rather easily. With her also working in the coffee shop it concerned her slightly that she could have pulled him away from his work. 

“I’ll try not to let you distract me - but that’s going to be pretty difficult.” Steven stated in a flirtatious tone. Despite being together for almost a year, Steven still found himself head over heels for the girl that he loved so much. The girl that had changed his life beyond belief. 

He loved her more than anything. 

“I’m not that distracting.”

“Yeah, you are.” 

“No! Says Mister ‘I’m going to call you whenever you’re on your fifteen-minute study breaks and continue to distract you for a further thirty minutes’. That’s not fair.” Connie laughed, it was partially her fault that she couldn’t quite get off the phone with Steven during some of her study breaks. 

Sometimes it was just the case that she needed to speak to him more and fifteen minutes just wasn’t going to cut it. Sometimes she wanted to vent to him for hours and he was more than happy to sit there and listen. They often found themselves falling asleep whilst on video chat or a phone call. A tradition that they had found themselves caught up in. 

“Okay - I’ll give you that one.” Steven smiled, knowing that he did purposefully find himself trying his hardest to get Connie to stay on the phone with him for longer. It wasn’t down to selfishness, it was more down to the fact that he knew that she needed to have a longer break. 

Connie worked herself too hard and it was clear that several times throughout the year Steven had become worried about her wellbeing. He often found himself doing whatever it was he possibly could to make sure that Connie was comfortable and wasn’t getting too stressed about getting her head stuck in a textbook. 

“So, what are we doing this summer?” Connie questioned, interested to see if Steven had thought of a plan. Of course, he had thought of a plan - it was Steven. 

“Hanging out and working!”

“But, where are we hanging out?” Connie cocked an eyebrow. 

“Well, Beach-a-palooza is in a few weeks.” Steven smirked, desperately wanting Connie to accept his invitation to attend the event for the second year in a row. 

Steven wasn’t quite sure if his dad would have been able to make the event this year, but that didn’t quite matter. No matter what Steven would have wanted to have invited Connie. Besides, Greg enjoyed Connie’s company too - every time they had met they had gotten on well with one another. 

“We’re going to have to go.” Connie laughed, of course they were going to have to go to the first place that they had ever interacted as more than a customer and barista. 

Beach-a-palooza was the first place that they had ever spoken to one another in a context that wasn’t related to coffee. It had felt nice for them to have finally been together in an environment that didn’t quite feel so enclosed. It was the moment in which Steven believed there was something different about the girl in front of him. He wanted to get to know her and he was so glad that he had taken the opportunity to do so. 

“Will you dance with me again?” Steven questioned, curious to know how much her confidence had swayed within the past year. 

“Maybe…” 

“Do I have to close my eyes this time?” Steven chuckled slightly, continuing to hold onto Connie gently. They had found themselves slowly rocking back and forth as if they were already participating in some kind of dance. 

“No, not this time.” Connie smiled, suddenly feeling a lot more confident in her actions around Steven. Of course, if they were going to go to the event again other people would have been there to see her dance with him. Although, this time it didn’t matter. 

Connie felt confident when she was with Steven and being out in public dancing with him at a music festival wouldn’t have been the end of time. In fact, at this point, she would have welcomed the activity. It would have been fun. 

Either way, regardless of what it was that they were going to do throughout the summer that they had together once again they knew that they would have fun. Even if most of it did include working at the coffee shop. They would have been together and that was all that mattered between them both. 

A part of Steven had always been worried that when Connie moved away to college she would have forgotten everything about him. It would have been easy to have packed up and left without a moment’s notice. A way of leaving everything behind - even Steven. 

Connie didn’t want that and she certainly didn’t do that. It was never her intention to have to break up with Steven at the end of summer because they were both doing completely different things. That wouldn’t have been right - Connie wanted to be with Steven no matter how much distance was between the two of them. 

“Good because I find it hard not to look at you.” Steven smirked, attempting to be playful with his words. Connie welcomed the comments. She had missed his constant flirting that he had shown her all summer the previous year. 

He still flirted with her constantly as if they hadn’t been in a committed relationship for over a year. Steven found it hard to comprehend his relationship with her. Connie was too perfect for him and sometimes he had to double take that someone so special wanted to give him the time of day. Connie loved Steven for who he was and nothing was going to be able to change that for her. It didn’t matter how far apart they were. 

Connie smiled up at his comment before once again planting a small kiss on his lips as if that was the only way that she could respond. She loved him beyond belief and she knew that when they couldn’t quite fathom the words that they so desperately wanted to speak that they found themselves kissing instead. It was the perfect way for them to communicate with one another when words couldn’t do them justice. 

They both vastly respected the attempt at communication, even if there was no room for words. 

“I can’t wait for this summer…” Connie grinned, she was so excited for the next few months with Steven. It would have been just the same as the previous summer, except this time they were openly in a relationship. They could have done whatever it was they desired without the awkward questioning or longing looks that couldn’t quite mean much other than a suggestion. 

They were both madly in love and they knew it. There was no denying it and neither of them wanted to. They wanted to express to one another how much they loved each other every second of the day. It was sickening for the average person to witness. 

“Me neither.” 

“But...are you ready for the best summer of your life?” Connie suddenly questioned. 

“Last summer was the best summer of my life.” Steven smiled happily, referring back to the summer in which he met Connie. The summer before that was one of misery and despair. 

“Well, this one will be better.” 

“How?”

Connie desperately wanted to say that it was due to the fact that this summer she wouldn’t have to constantly be anxious about sneaking around behind her parent's back to be with a boy. She certainly wouldn’t have to tell Steven about college at the end of it - that anxiety had dissipated. The biggest one was the fact that she didn’t have to bottle up her feelings for Steven deep within her - this year they were free to shout the three words at each other as they had been doing so since last August. 

“Because this summer we can be together all summer long. No interruptions. No college. No parents. No hiding how we really feel.” Connie gently threaded her finger through the curls at the bottom of his cap on the back of his head, just above his neck. 

“That does sound pretty good.” Steven glanced off to the side, thinking about how a summer without all of the disruption would look. 

It looked perfect. 

“And at the end of it - you get to move out.” Connie reminded him, bringing back all kinds of emotions to him. 

“And be closer to you.” Steven added one of his large motivations for wanting to be away from home for longer than usual. 

“Exactly.” 

“That does sound like a pretty good summer...” Steven shrugged, continuing to hold Connie as close as he could without intruding in her personal space. Connie didn’t mind - she wanted Steven in her personal space as much as possible. His presence was a great comfort to her. 

“Lars and Sadie aren’t going to appreciate us very much if we try and get our breaks together.” Connie chuckled, knowing that a part of her desperately wanted them to always try and get their breaks together so they could spend more time with one another. Steven would have very much enjoyed that. 

“Look, I know you’re usually the realistic one - but I don’t think they’d let us do that.” Steven smiled, wanting nothing more than to spend each and every one of his breaks with his girlfriend. Logistically - that wasn’t going to happen. 

“I can dream.” 

“Speaking of breaks, if I don’t get back on time Lars might not be the happiest.” Steven gritted his teeth together and forced a smile. Sure, he wanted to be with Connie as much as possible, but work came first whilst he was still on the clock. He had to make sure that he was getting enough money so that he could move out when he wanted to, otherwise it would have been a complete waste of time. 

“Yeah, I’ve felt the miserable wrath of Lars before. I know he takes longer breaks, so it’s incredibly hypocritical of him to comment on the length of our breaks.” Connie shook her head, remembering her time at Beach City Coffee. 

“That’s just...Lars.” Steven shrugged. 

“Yeah…”

“I’ll see you tonight though, right?” Steven questioned, having already organised a night out together. It wasn’t going to be much, but a new movie in one of their favourite film series had just come out in the cinema and they were both excited to go and see it. They opted to see the film together and Connie was more than ready to write a critical review of the movie after they had seen it. 

“Of course! How could I forget?”

“You wouldn’t!”

“I-” 

Before Connie could even begin a new sentence Steven had pushed his lips against hers, finding himself locked inside of a kiss that took him a million miles away. They kissed just the same every single time that they met up with one another and each time was just as special as the last. However, no matter how many times that Steven kissed her they continued to be blown away by the experience. 

The sheer amount of dopamine that spread throughout them whenever they found themselves locked in the moment was beautiful. There was nothing that could have compared to what they felt. 

“I’ll see you tonight.” Steven whispered as he disconnected their lips, knowing that he had to get back to work as soon as possible.

“I’ll see you tonight.” Connie repeated before Steven let go of her and found himself backing away from the scenario, tipping the cap as he stepped back. 

He opened the door to the coffee shop, allowing Connie to step past him. She grabbed the drink that he had made her off the counter as she passed and took a sip as he watched, nodding happily as the cold and sugary drink slid down her throat smoothly. It was gorgeous. 

Steven leant on the counter as Connie didn’t say any further words, making her way around the counter and continuing to sip on the drink. She was beautiful. He watched her wave back at him as she exited the coffee shop, he gave her a little wave back, sighing deeply. 

He was so in love. 

“See, my advice was always pretty solid. I knew you two would end up together like this. You should just call me ‘The Master of Love’.” Lars commented as he positioned himself next to Steven on the counter. 

“Nope. I’m not doing that.” Steven rolled his eyes. 

Steven didn’t quite expect to fall so deeply in love with the barista that was happy to make the horrible drinks that he once requested. Yet, after everything that he had been through Connie was like a light at the end of the tunnel. 

Finally, things were as they should have been. 

Steven smiled towards the door before taking the cap off his head and tracing his fingers over the embroidered ‘Beach City Coffee’ logo. 

Steven had no idea that he could find such happiness in a place that served coffee and sugary beverages.

Steven didn’t believe it at first and yet there he was - the happiest he had ever been.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Really, thank you to everyone who read and supported this story the whole way through. I'm low-key in pain that a stupid coffee shop AU has become my top story. UGH. HOWEVER, I love you all and I'm glad that you enjoyed this story and the rollercoaster it took you on. I've made some fantastic friends through this story and without writing it I wouldn't have met them. 
> 
> I have a few more projects in the works and I can't wait for you to all see them. They're all a lot of fun to write and I can't wait! 
> 
> So, go and get some coffee. You deserve it. :^)

**Author's Note:**

> Come shout at me on Tumblr @ConnverseTheUniverse


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